Head of Casualty Claims

Guild Group; Sydney; Hybrid; AUD 180,000 - 250,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working

Incentives program

Staff discounts

Employee assistance program

Job summary

Guild Insurance in Australia is seeking Head of Casualty Claims to lead the strategic, technical and commercial performance of our complex long-tail claims portfolio, including professional indemnity, public liability, products liability and institutional abuse claims.

Based in Melbourne or Sydney, you will build on momentum to reimagine the function, foster a safe team environment, manage exposure to trauma, and guide portfolio decisions with senior stakeholders and across the business.

Qualifications

• Significant leadership experience within general insurance casualty claims across complex long-tail claims or portfolios.
• Accountability for the performance and direction of a claims function, including developing leaders, building technical capability and setting clear standards for decision making.
• Deep expertise across professional indemnity, public liability, products liability and other complex or high-value liability matters.
• Strong knowledge of coverage, litigation, reserving and settlement strategy, ideally supported by a legal qualification.
• Strong commercial judgement and the ability to work across functions, take visible accountability and influence portfolio and broader business outcomes.
• A career developed within general insurance, potentially complemented by experience in insurance broking or legal practice, and the credibility to influence senior internal and external stakeholders

Responsibilities

• Lead the strategy, performance and continued development of the Casualty Claims function.
• Provide technical leadership across complex liability, coverage, litigation, reserving and settlement matters.
• Strengthen early intervention, triage and active management of long-tail claims and professional indemnity portfolios.
• Improve portfolio performance through disciplined claims management, commercial controls and effective management of legal spend.
• Develop the leadership and technical capability of the team, setting clear standards and accountability for decision making.
• Partner across Underwriting, Actuarial, Legal, Finance, Risk and Reinsurance to identify emerging risks and support sustainable portfolio outcomes

Skills

Leadership

Casualty claims

Public liability

Professional indemnity

Products liability

Coverage knowledge

Litigation experience

Reserving

Settlement strategy

Legal qualification

Cross-functional collaboration

Job description

Guild Insurance is a proudly Australian owned insurer with over 60 years of experience supporting professionals and businesses across the country. We partner with over 40 industry associations to deliver specialised, industry-informed insurance solutions and are trusted by more than 110,000 customers nationwide.

How we will thrive together

At Guild Insurance we thrive together by staying connected to meaningful work and supporting each other to grow. Our people are driven by purpose, curious about what is possible and genuinely care about the impact they make.

As a specialist insurer, we combine deep expertise and unmatched credibility in the markets we serve with the agility to adapt and move quickly. Our leaders are highly visible and work close to our customers, our people and our strategy, so you can make a real difference from day one. Working across teams, sharing expertise and taking accountability are central to how we operate and deliver better outcomes for our customers.

Your New Role

As Head of Casualty Claims, you will lead the strategic, technical and commercial performance of our complex long-tail claims portfolio, including professional indemnity, public liability, products liability and institutional abuse claims.

You will build on the significant work already undertaken to reimagine the Casualty Claims function, maintaining its momentum while leading the next stage of its development. Given the nature of complex casualty and institutional abuse claims, you will also foster a psychologically safe and supportive team environment. You will help ensure appropriate practices are in place to manage exposure to trauma, support employee wellbeing and build a sustainable, resilient claims function

Drawing on your deep casualty claims expertise, you will provide leadership across complex coverage and liability matters, litigation strategy, reserving and significant settlements. You will also strengthen portfolio management, develop the capability of the team and continue evolving how we deliver sound, consistent and commercially informed claims decisions.

This is a highly visible and accountable leadership role within a specialist insurer. You will work closely with leaders across Guild Insurance, using claims insights and your technical expertise to influence portfolio decisions and broader business outcomes.

The role can be based in Melbourne or Sydney.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the strategy, performance and continued development of the Casualty Claims function
• Provide technical leadership across complex liability, coverage, litigation, reserving and settlement matters
• Strengthen early intervention, triage and active management of long-tail claims and professional indemnity portfolios
• Improve portfolio performance through disciplined claims management, commercial controls and effective management of legal spend
• Develop the leadership and technical capability of the team, setting clear standards and accountability for decision making
• Partner across Underwriting, Actuarial, Legal, Finance, Risk and Reinsurance to identify emerging risks and support sustainable portfolio outcomes

What you will bring

• Essential for this role is significant leadership experience within general insurance casualty claims across complex long-tail claims or portfolios
• Demonstrated accountability for the performance and direction of a claims function, including developing leaders, building technical capability and setting clear standards for decision making
• Deep expertise across professional indemnity, public liability, products liability and other complex or high-value liability matters
• Strong knowledge of coverage, litigation, reserving and settlement strategy, ideally supported by a legal qualification
• Strong commercial judgement and the ability to work across functions, take visible accountability and influence portfolio and broader business outcomes
• A career developed within general insurance, potentially complemented by experience in insurance broking or legal practice, and the credibility to influence senior internal and external stakeholders

Some of our benefits include

• Hybrid working with two days in the office every second Friday and flexibility to work from home on other days
• Competitive remuneration plus annual short-term incentive, paid parental leave and enhanced leave benefits
• Staff discounts, wellbeing initiatives and access to the Employee Assistance Program for staff and their families