Senior Commercial Underwriting Specialist

Virtual Digital Academy; Abu Dhabi; Remote; AED 360,000 - 520,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Remote work

Professional development

Certifications opportunities

Competitive compensation

Job summary

Virtual Digital Academy in the UAE is seeking a Senior Commercial Underwriting Specialist to assess insurance applications, evaluate business risks, and determine coverage terms for UAE markets. This fully remote role requires coordinating with brokers, clients, and internal teams to ensure sound underwriting decisions.

You will analyze financial data, review risk exposures, and support pricing and policy conditions within UAE regulations.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Insurance, Finance, Risk Management, or related discipline.
• Experience underwriting commercial insurance, preferably property, construction, engineering, or liability.
• Strong analytical and documentation skills.
• Knowledge of UAE insurance market practices and regulations.
• Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration.

Responsibilities

• Assess commercial insurance applications, renewals, endorsements, and coverage changes.
• Evaluate risks involving property, construction, engineering, or liability insurance.
• Review financial statements, claims histories, risk surveys, contracts, and supporting docs.
• Analyze business operations, project characteristics, loss exposure, and risk mitigation measures.
• Recommend coverage terms, exclusions, deductibles, limits, premiums, and other underwriting conditions.
• Apply underwriting guidelines and delegated authority limits.
• Conduct risk assessments for contractors, suppliers, and construction-related projects.
• Collaborate with brokers, agents, claims specialists, and internal stakeholders to obtain information.
• Identify high-risk applications, unusual exposures, incomplete disclosures, and potential underwriting concerns.
• Support pricing analysis using claims data, loss ratios, exposure information, and market benchmarks.
• Monitor portfolio performance and market conditions; review renewals and adjust coverage or pricing.
• Document underwriting rationale and approvals; ensure compliance with UAE regulations.
• Support audits and portfolio reviews by maintaining underwriting records.
• Prepare management reports on underwriting performance and premiums trends.
• Suggest improvements to procedures and risk evaluation tools.

Skills

Analytical skills

Negotiation

Decision-making

Documentation

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

We're Hiring: Senior Commercial Underwriting Specialist

Location: United Arab Emirates (Remote)

Employment Type: Full-Time

Experience Level: Mid-Level to Senior

Work Arrangement: Fully Remote

About Us

We are a construction-focused organization committed to commercial excellence, financial stability, and effective risk management. Our teams across Finance, Legal, Procurement, Commercial, Engineering, and Project Management collaborate to evaluate business risks, protect organizational interests, and support sustainable growth.

The Role

We are seeking an experienced Senior Commercial Underwriting Specialist to assess commercial insurance applications, evaluate business risks, determine appropriate coverage terms, and support underwriting decisions. The successful candidate will analyze financial and operational information, review risk exposures, recommend pricing and policy conditions, and ensure underwriting decisions align with established guidelines and applicable UAE requirements.

Key Responsibilities

• Assess commercial insurance applications, renewals, endorsements, and requests for coverage changes.
• Evaluate risks involving property, construction, engineering, liability, equipment, and other commercial insurance classes.
• Review financial statements, claims histories, risk surveys, contracts, and supporting documentation.
• Analyze business operations, project characteristics, loss exposure, and risk mitigation measures.
• Recommend coverage terms, exclusions, deductibles, limits, premiums, and other underwriting conditions.
• Apply underwriting guidelines, delegated authority limits, and internal risk acceptance standards.
• Conduct risk assessments for contractors, suppliers, commercial entities, and construction-related projects where relevant.
• Collaborate with brokers, agents, claims specialists, loss adjusters, and internal stakeholders to obtain additional information.
• Identify high-risk applications, unusual exposures, incomplete disclosures, and potential underwriting concerns.
• Support pricing analysis using claims data, loss ratios, exposure information, and relevant market benchmarks.
• Monitor portfolio performance, emerging risk trends, and changes in market conditions.
• Review renewals and recommend adjustments to coverage, pricing, or risk conditions based on updated information.
• Document underwriting rationale, risk assessments, approvals, and exceptions accurately.
• Ensure underwriting activities comply with internal policies, contractual obligations, and applicable UAE insurance regulations.
• Support audits, portfolio reviews, and regulatory assessments by maintaining complete underwriting records.
• Prepare management reports covering underwriting performance, premium trends, risk concentration, and portfolio profitability.
• Recommend improvements to underwriting procedures, risk evaluation tools, and operational workflows.

Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Insurance, Finance, Risk Management, Business Administration, or a related discipline.
• Relevant experience in commercial underwriting, preferably involving property, construction, engineering, or liability insurance.
• Strong understanding of underwriting principles, insurance policy structures, pricing, and risk assessment methodologies.
• Experience reviewing financial information, claims histories, risk surveys, and commercial documentation.
• Familiarity with UAE insurance market practices and applicable regulatory requirements.
• Strong analytical, negotiation, decision-making, and documentation skills.
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to work effectively with brokers and cross-functional teams.
• Ability to manage competing priorities while maintaining sound underwriting judgment.

Preferred Certifications

• Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) qualifications.
• Associate in Commercial Underwriting (AU) or equivalent underwriting qualification.
• Certifications in insurance risk management or enterprise risk management.
• Relevant construction, property, or engineering insurance training.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• Accuracy and consistency of underwriting assessments.
• Timeliness of application reviews and renewal decisions.
• Portfolio profitability and loss ratio performance.
• Compliance with underwriting guidelines and delegated authority limits.
• Quality of underwriting documentation and audit outcomes.
• Effectiveness of risk identification and pricing recommendations.

What We Offer

• Competitive compensation based on qualifications and experience.
• Remote working arrangements, subject to operational requirements.
• Professional development and opportunities for relevant insurance certifications.
• A collaborative environment focused on risk analysis and commercial excellence.
• Opportunities to contribute to underwriting strategy and portfolio performance.