Senior Underwriter

NHBC; Milton Keynes; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

27 days annual leave + bank holidays

holiday purchase scheme

enhanced pension scheme (up to 10.5%)

life assurance

subsidised private medical insurance

employee discounts platform

two days volunteer leave

enhanced maternity, paternity, adoptio

leave and pay for all new parents

Job summary

NHBC is seeking a Senior Underwriter to join our Milton Keynes/London team in a hybrid role with two days in the office. You will take ownership of challenging risk assessments and help shape underwriting standards within a market-leading home warranty and insurance provider.

You will lead complex, high-value underwriting decisions, review major projects and surety bonds, provide technical guidance to colleagues, and mentor junior underwriters while maintaining strong stakeholder relationships.

Qualifications

• Extensive underwriting experience with delegated authority.
• Strong technical judgement balancing commercial considerations.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead the assessment and underwriting of complex, unusual and high-value risks within your delegated authority.
• Evaluate major developments, construction methods, contractor capability and associated risk exposures.
• Underwrite complex road and sewer bonds, assessing contractor strength and risk.
• Make sound decisions on risk selection, terms and conditions with escalation where needed.
• Provide technical guidance, peer reviews and mentoring to Underwriters.
• Contribute to underwriting guidelines and improvements to processes.
• Build relationships with stakeholders and negotiate complex underwriting requirements.

Skills

Underwriting experience

Technical judgement

Stakeholder management

Mentoring

Communication

Decision making

Education

Degree

ACII

Senior-level experience

Job description

Overview

Job Role:SeniorUnderwriter

Salary:£60,000 - £85,000 + 10% performance bonus

Working Location: Milton Keynes/London, Hybrid working, 2 days in office

Employment Type: Full Time, Permanent

Closing Date:18th November 2026

Job summary:

As a Senior Underwriter, you'll play a key role in assessing complex, high-value and non-standard risks, using your technical expertise and commercial judgement to make informed underwriting decisions. Working across referred cases, major projects and surety and bonds, you'll take ownership of challenging assessments, provide technical guidance to colleagues and help shape underwriting standards and processes. This is a great opportunity to use your experience to influence underwriting quality, support continuous improvement and contribute to the management of risk across NHBC.

What you’ll be doing:

• Lead the assessment and underwriting of complex, unusual and high-value risks within your delegated authority.
• Evaluate major developments, construction methods, contractor capability and associated risk exposures.
• Underwrite complex road and sewer bonds, assessing contractor strength, insolvency risks and appropriate security requirements.
• Make sound, evidence-based decisions on risk selection, terms and conditions, escalating cases where specialist approval is required.
• Provide technical guidance, peer reviews and mentoring to Underwriters, supporting consistent and high-quality decision-making.
• Contribute to underwriting guidelines, referral criteria and improvements to underwriting processes.
• Build strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders, confidently discussing and negotiating complex underwriting requirements.

What we’re looking for:

• Extensive relevant underwriting experience, with a strong track record of making independent decisions within delegated authority.
• Experience assessing complex, non-standard or borderline risks in referred-case underwriting, major projects, or surety and bonds
• Strong technical judgement, with the ability to balance commercial considerations and make well-evidenced decisions.
• A good understanding of underwriting principles, risk selection, credit and counterparty considerations, and delegated authority.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with the confidence to influence, challenge and explain complex decisions.
• Experience supporting, coaching or mentoring colleagues and sharing technical expertise.
• A professional insurance qualification or equivalent senior-level experience. A degree and ACII qualification (or working towards it) would be advantageous.

What we offer

Our benefits package includes:

• 27 days annual leave + bank holidays
• holiday purchase scheme
• enhanced pension scheme (up to 10.5%)
• life assurance
• subsidised private medical insurance
• employee discounts platform
• two days volunteer leave
• enhanced maternity, paternity, adoption leave and pay for all new parents

+ many more!

Who we are

At NHBC, we pride ourselves on being truly unique. No other organisation in our sector matches the range of services and scale we provide. As the market leader, we are recognised as the go-to for new home warranties and insurance. Our team is united by a core purpose: to raise the standards of house building and protect homeowners.

Why you should join us

As a modern, family-friendly employer, we’re in a phase of rapid growth, embracing technology, data and new ways of working. We’re seeking passionate, skilled and driven individuals to join us on this exciting journey.

Once onboard, you’ll have access to fantastic opportunities for personal and career growth. You’ll receive thorough training, continuous development and the chance to earn recognised qualifications and professional memberships to support your journey.

We support flexible working and encourage our colleagues to find a balance that suits them. While we may not be able to accommodate every request, we’re always happy to have a conversation about flexible working arrangements.

Our inclusive culture

We are dedicated to fostering an inclusive culture where everyone feels empowered to bring their authentic selves to work. We firmly believe in the right of all our employees and customers to be treated fairly, with dignity and respect, and free from discrimination. Our active employee networks support colleagues and their allies, providing safe spaces for open conversations and idea-sharing.

We are a Disability Confident organisation committed to fair and inclusive recruitment. Our first step is to review applications to ensure candidates meet the essential criteria for the role. We assess skills, experience, and potential objectively, and provide support or reasonable adjustments where needed. Candidates who meet the criteria will progress to the next stage.