Paul Cumberland, professional indemnity underwriter at Markel International, tells Andrew Holt about the need for qualifications
In an attempt to experience all sides of the industry, some brokers move into underwriting. Four years ago, 32-year-old Paul Cumberland did just that when he moved from the broker side to an underwriting role at Markel International. He now works within its professional liability division, underwriting intellectual property and medical malpractice while overseeing binding authority management.
He says: "The challenge calls for a combination of skills through a range of disciplines: the actuarial focus required when pricing a risk tests the intellect; social skills are a must as the majority of London market operates on strong relationships; and you cannot ignore the legal element of the job with the end product and trading process being based on contract law."
Prior to joining Markel, he was involved in the management of large binding authority accounts at Aon.
With a politics degree from Durham University and a masters in social and political science from Cambridge, Cumberland was attracted to insurance by the challenge of accepting risk on behalf of a company.
While at Markel, he completed his full ACII exams, having already obtained the equivalent of the standard diploma in insurance. Cumberland says: "The qualification gives you an advantage as it shows employers you are willing to apply yourself and the knowledge you pick up has genuine practical application."
The ACII qualifications are not essential for a career in insurance.
This contrasts with professional qualifications in comparable industries.
In accountancy, for instance, you cannot practice at all unless you have the ACCA qualification and new recruits are required to pass this by their employers or they face an uncertain future.
It is Cumberland's view that the ACII will only obtain the weight it deserves when it is officially required, industry wide, in order to fill certain positions or progress to the next career stage. "At the same time greater support needs to be provided to candidates from employers and industry organisations. It is probably the case for the majority of candidates that they must study for their exams in their own spare time and in isolation outside of a formal teaching context," he says.
This sacrifice makes taking the ACII an unattractive prospect for some, especially when the perceived upside benefits are not immediately recognised in terms of qualified status, pay increase or promotion.
It may benefit the qualification and those taking it if the CII were stricter in the selection of subjects chosen. Cumberland says: "In order to receive your ACII certificate you need to pass 10 exams with the majority of test subjects at the discretion of the candidate. While it is nice to have choice, some subjects are harder, longer and more complex than others. In some cases this can lead to candidates opting to take the lightweight subjects but gaining less practical knowledge.
"The qualification would also benefit from a greater number of subjects which can be more closely related to the individual's own sector."
Cumberland adds: "The backing of the market as a whole is needed to make this qualification an essential requirement. The advantages of doing so include improved knowledge and greater respect to the insurance industry from outsiders.
"It should be compulsory for new recruits to complete the ACII and be given study time to do so."
