Liability Claims Manager

Central Insurance Company; Van Wert (OH); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Central Insurance Company seeks a Liability Claims Manager to lead a team of casualty claim adjusters handling first and third party bodily injury claims up to $250,000, including active litigation. You will set coverage, manage reserves, and coach staff to think independently in a dynamic environment.

You will collaborate with Underwriting, Product, and Loss Control, drive fraud indicators, and ensure regulatory compliance while delivering strong outcomes for customers and agency partners.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree with 6+ years claims experience or 8+ years with the same demonstrated expertise.
• At least 2 years of leadership experience directly supervising claims adjusters.

Responsibilities

• Lead and coach casualty claims team from first notice to final resolution.
• Oversee bodily injury claims up to $250,000, including active litigation.
• Direct coverage analysis on business auto and CGL policies.
• Review reserves, settlements, and referrals to counsel.
• Ensure timely reserves and thorough liability investigations.
• Collaborate with underwriting, product, and loss control on trends.
• Partner with defense counsel on litigated inventories and strategy.

Skills

Leadership

Claims handling

Coaching

Negotiation

Team development

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Claims systems

Microsoft Suite

Job description

Posted Tuesday, August 4, 2026 at 4:00 AM

Location: Van Wert, OH; Dublin, OH; Waltham, MA; Alpharetta, GA; Irving, TX
Work Model: Hybrid
Position type: Full time - salary

We’re a team of employees passionate about delivering best-in-class customer service and driving innovation in claims management. Integrity, relationships, and excellence are at the heart of everything we do.

Our employees fully utilize their talents and bring their best selves to work. We believe who you are is just as important as what you do!

At Central Insurance, excellence is our policy and people are at the heart of everything we do. As a Liability Claims Manager, you will lead a team of casualty claim adjusters handling first and third partybodily injury claims withexposuresup to $250,000, including files in active litigation and a significant portion arising from commercial risks written on business auto and commercial general liability policies. You will setdirectionon coverage, liability, damages, and resolution strategy while coaching your team to think independently, own their decisions, and get better with every file. If you are energized by developing claim professionals, driving strong outcomes, and building relationships that customers and agency partners can count on when it matters most, this is your seat.

Key Responsibilities of the Role

Team Leadership and Development

• Lead, coach, and develop a team of casualty claims adjusters handling first and third party bodily injury claims from first notice of loss through final resolution.
• Build technical judgment through regular one-on-ones, structured file reviews at key milestones in the claim life cycle, and real-time coaching on open exposures.
• Develop adjusters who can state their own case strategy, defend their reasoning, and recommend a course of action rather than waiting for direction.
• Complete performance appraisals, participate in salary recommendations, assist in hiring, and own onboarding and ramp-up plans for new team members.
• Manage workload distribution, inventory balance, and staffing needs across a mixed inventory of commercial and personal lines injury and property damage claims.

Technical Claim Oversight

• Oversee bodily injury claims ranging from minor soft tissue exposures to serious and permanent injury claims valued up to $250,000, including claims in active litigation.
• Direct coverage analysis on business auto and commercial general liability policies, including additional insured status, contractual risk transfer, other insurance and excess clauses, primary and non-contributory wording, and umbrella or excess placement.
• Review and approve reservation of rights positions, coverage dismiss reports, and referral for coverage counsel where warranted.
• Ensure timely and accurate reserves that reflect ultimate probable exposure, with documented rationale supporting every material reserve movement.
• Approve settlement authority within your level, prepare and present files above your authority, and participate in roundtables and large loss reviews.
• Ensure thorough liability investigations.
• Oversee damages evaluations.
• Drive recognition and pursuit of subrogation, contribution, and indemnity, and hold the team accountable to deadlines.
• Lead the team in identifying fraud indicators and ensuring suspected fraudulent claims are appropriately referred for investigation.
• Manage litigated inventory in partnership with defense counsel, including litigation plans, budgets, discovery strategy, dispositive motions, and trial readiness.

Financial and Operational Accountability

• Monitor indemnity and expensespendacross the unit, including defense counsel costs, vendor use, and approved supplier compliance.
• Use dashboards and performance data to manage exposure age, suspense discipline, closing ratios, reserve accuracy, and claim quality audit results.
• Identify leakage and process gaps, then translate findings into concrete coaching and workflow changes.
• Ensure compliance with state regulatory and statutory requirements, unfair claims practices acts, licensing, privacy, and internal claim handling standards.

Relationships and Collaboration

• Serve as the escalation point for policyholders, claimants, agents, and attorneys on complex or sensitive matters.
• Build and maintain strong working relationships with agency partners and internal stakeholders.
• Partner with Underwriting, Product, and Loss Control by sharing claim trends and loss drivers that inform risk selection and account management.
• Collaborate with peer managers and claims leadership on strategy, process improvement, and special projects.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and six years of claims experience with demonstrated expertise in investigating, evaluating, negotiating, and settling claims, or eight years of claims experience with the same demonstrated expertise.
• Minimum of two years of prior leadership experience directly managing or supervising claims adjusters, including responsibility for performance management, coaching, file quality review, and workload assignment.
• Demonstrated experience developing adjuster technical skill through structured file reviews, one-on-one coaching, and onboarding or training of new team members.
• Hands-on experience handling commercial general liability and business auto claims is required.
• Demonstrated experience with first and third party bodily injury claims, including serious injury exposures.
• Demonstrated experience managing claims in litigation,including working directly with defense counsel and participating in mediation or other alternative dispute resolution.
• Experience setting and defending reserves on bodily injury exposures and evaluating claims within a defined authority structure.
• Experience handling claims across multiple jurisdictions with differing negligence standards, damages rules, and statutory requirements.
• Adjuster licensing as required by state regulation, or the ability to obtain licensing.
• Travel required as needed.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior leadership experience specifically over a casualty or bodily injury unit.
• Demonstrated ability to interpret CGL policy and apply to complex exposures including premises liability, products and completed operations, construction defect, and contractual risk transfer or additional insured disputes.
• CPCU, SCLA, AIC, or similar industry designation.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Strong working knowledge of commercial general liability and business auto policy forms, including common endorsements, exclusions, and additional insured wording.
• Ability to lead a team through complex coverage analysis and to articulate a coverage position clearly in writing.
• Solid command of bodily injury damages evaluation, including medical terminology, treatment patterns, causation issues, pre-existing conditions, wage loss, and future care exposure.
• Understanding of comparative and contributory negligence frameworks, joint and several liability, statutes of limitation, and the practical impact of venue on claim value.
• Working knowledge of litigation process and litigation cost management, including budgets, staffing decisions, and defense counsel performance.
• Ability to train, develop, motivate, and evaluate the performance of employees.
• Ability to coach through questions and build decision-making capability rather than simply providing answers.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to make sound decisions using incomplete information.
• Clear and professional written and verbal communication with customers, agents, attorneys, and internal partners.
• Ability to manage external vendor resources including independent adjusters, surveillance, bill review, and other experts.
• Skilled in change management with an innovative and continuous improvement mindset.
• Proficient in Microsoft Suite and comfortable using claims systems and reporting dashboards.
• Ability to ensure the team complies with state regulatory and statutory requirements, corporate privacy standards, and internal claim handling policy.

Total Rewards

Central establishes base pay based on several factors including labor market data and an evaluation of candidate qualifications relative to role requirements. Base pay is one component of a comprehensive total rewards package designed to support employees’ financial, health, career, and retirement objectives. Central provides extensive health and wellness benefits to promote flexibility, work-life balance, and long-term financial security. For more information, see Central Insurance Benefits

Work Authorization

Central will only employ those who are legally authorized to work in the United States. This is not a position for which sponsorship will be provided. Individuals with temporary visas such as E, F-1(including those with OPT or CPT) , H-1, H-2, L-1, B, J or TN, or who need sponsorship for work authorization now or in the future, are not eligible for hire.

Equal Opportunity Employer

It is the policy of Central that all recruiting, hiring, training, compensation, overtime, job classification and assignment, facilities, promotions, transfers, employee treatment and all other terms and conditions of employment shall be maintained in a manner which will not discriminate against any person because of race, color, age, sex, national origin, ancestry, religion, marital status, military status, or disability. The applicant should respond to questions on this application in a way that will not divulge such information. #LI-SB1 #LI-Hybrid