Senior Personal Lines Underwriter

Overview

The Senior New Business Underwriter is responsible for underwriting and managing new personal lines business with a balanced focus on profitable growth, risk selection, and agency partnership. This role applies expert underwriting judgment, analytics, and deep knowledge of company guidelines to evaluate new business submissions across personal auto, property, and liability lines. The Senior Underwriter collaborates closely with internal stakeholders and external agents to support growth objectives while maintaining underwriting discipline and portfolio quality.

This position emphasizes efficiency, service excellence, and business insight to achieve departmental and corporate goals. The position follows a hybrid work schedule with three in-office days. Mondays and Tuesdays are mandatory, with the third day being flexible. Occasional travel may be required, including agency visits, related events, and occasional overnight stays.

• Department
  :
  Personal Lines Underwriting
• Reports to
  : PL Underwriting Manager
• Location
  :
  Portland, Maine
• Job Knowledge
  :
  • Conducts new business underwriting of personal auto and property risks, applying expert knowledge of policy coverages, company guidelines, systems, and underwriting philosophies.
  • Ensures underwriting decisions align with company policies, risk appetite, and regulatory requirements.
  • Applies portfolio management principles and analytics to support new business decision-making and growth strategies.
  • Partners with leadership on complex or unusual risks, referrals, or regulatory considerations.
  • Promotes continual self-learning and remains informed of competitive and industry trends; actively shares knowledge across internal and external stakeholders.
• Judgement
  :
  • Exercises expert-level judgment in assessing new business risks and applying underwriting guidelines to balance growth and profitability.
  • Effectively conveys underwriting decisions, requirements, and rationale in a professional manner appropriate to the audience.
  • Identifies and responds to emerging trends, submission quality issues, or concentration risks within new business.
  • Collaborates with management on underwriting exceptions, referrals, or customer concerns.
  • Demonstrates accountability and sound decision-making aligned with corporate and departmental goals.
• Communication, Relationship Building and Teamwork
  :
  • Develops and maintains productive, long-term agency relationships to support new business growth and mutual success.
  • Clearly communicates underwriting appetite, requirements, and decisions to agents.
  • Partners with Marketing and internal stakeholders to ensure agents understand underwriting guidelines, product offerings, and service standards.
  • Participates in agency visits, marketing appointments, and industry events to support relationship-building and growth initiatives.
  • Fosters collaboration within the underwriting team and across departments to drive consistency, efficiency, and improvement.
• Delivery and Productivity
  :
  • Manages new business workload efficiently while maintaining accuracy in documentation and underwriting systems.
  • Prioritizes underwriting actions based on growth objectives, risk quality, and profitability considerations.
  • Provides timely, responsive service to agents to support new business acquisition.
  • Adapts effectively to changing business needs, priorities, and market conditions while maintaining consistent performance.
  • Supports operational efficiency and adherence to service standards.
• Analysis/Business Insight/Compliance
  :
  • Uses available business intelligence and data analytics to evaluate new business performance, trends, and risks.
  • Analyzes loss history and submission characteristics to identify exposures or patterns relevant to underwriting decisions.
  • Remains informed of competitors’ market presence and regulatory changes and assesses potential impact on underwriting strategy.
  • Considers and proposes product, pricing, or process improvements to enhance competitive position and ease of doing business.
  • Ensures compliance with regulatory requirements and internal underwriting guidelines in all underwriting actions.
• Leadership
  :
  • Serves as a resource for handling more complex new…