Good news if you're looking to go into the insurance jobs market in the United Kingdom - it's booming. In fact, according to the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII), it's the second fastest growing sector in the country at the moment! The CII's statistics show that last year there were around 8,750 new insurance jobs created, an increase of 3% on the previous year's total. This means that even in uncertain economic times, there's always going to be employment available in this sector.

What are the best roles?

The typical roles in insurance are working in the following areas. Underwriting, Claims and Broking. These staff members understand their clients' businesses and advise on their policies and claims. As more companies look to grow and become recognised, there will be more opportunities for Insurance Brokers who help them with their cover – especially when it comes to big-ticket items like buildings and liability insurance. These roles take time to gain knowledge and experience, but you can reap huge rewards once experienced! 

What should I study if I want this job?

To become an insurance professional, you can either become "qualified" through experience, or take the industry standard qualifications, which are run by the CII (Chartered Insurance Institute) by way of the Cert CII exam, and then moving onto Dip CII and ACII. Plenty of brokers and insurers now offer graduate and college based trainee opportunities too, so a degree can go a long way to facilitating a move into the insurance market. 

Where can I find further information?

The majority of account handlers are employed by insurance brokerages, who can be a large corporate or a smaller SME. Larger companies tend to have their own dedicated human resources teams and will be more open to a conversation regarding your career aspirations, as they have the ability to train you. Smaller companies may not be able to offer a lot of support, so would recommend you reaching out to the larger firms in the market as your first port of call. One option is to visit insurance businesses websites and apply directly for graduate/trainee opportunities.  Another option is to browse LinkedIn for HR and Talent Acquisition profiles and reach out with an introduction about yourself. You could also consider using recruitment agencies such as us!