Insurance salaries vary according to size of business, location and expertise. The figures below are a guide only.

Insurance salaries: broking

Typical starting salaries range from £15,000–£30,000 and many companies offer performance-linked bonuses. After three to five years, you can expect to earn from £20,000–£40,000, but remuneration depends largely on the size and nature of the company you join, as well as your location. At senior levels, salaries are in excess of £100,000.

Insurance salaries: claims

Your typical starting salary is likely to range from £12,000–£16,500, rising to £25,000 or more after two or three years’ experience. Claims managers with more than 10 years’ experience can command between £30,000 and £60,000 per year.

Insurance salaries: loss adjusting

Upon joining a loss adjuster your salary is likely to be around £18,000–£22,000 depending on your previous experience in the profession. In some firms this will be augmented by a bonus scheme that rewards quality claims handling – for desk-based work this might amount to as much as 10% of salary, while for loss adjusters out on the road the rewards could mean an additional £5,000.

Further salary growth is dependent entirely on the firm you join and the area of specialism you choose.

Insurance salaries: reinsurance

With strong competition in the market and very large companies dominating the field the rewards for careers in reinsurance can be high. Typical starting salaries for graduates are around £22,000–£25,000. In addition, many companies will also recognise the acquisition of professional qualifications in your salary package. Progress from here will depend on the specialism you choose and salaries within reinsurance are broadly comparable to those awarded to specialist roles in the wider insurance field.

On top of your salary, you can also look forward to many of the benefits that usually come with working for a large, well-resourced company.

Insurance salaries: risk management

Although entrance at graduate level is unusual, a typical starting salary for a new entrant is likely to be in the region of £21,000. Fully competent surveyors with two to three years’ experience command £26,000–£35,000 with added benefits, while those with extensive experience will receive from £40,000–£65,000, or £60,000–£100,000 in London. Further benefits often include the provision of a car and the opportunity to work from home.

Insurance salaries: underwriting

The typical salary for a new graduate entrant varies from £18,000–£25,000, increasing with substantial experience to £40,000–£100,000.

Professional underwriters at Lloyd’s of London, who are different from ‘underwriter members’, can earn over £300,000.

Benefits

Benefits packages can add considerable weight to a job offer because even though the headline salary remains the same, the value to you can be significantly greater – the monetary and practical value of some benefits packages is impressive, and should not be overlooked, particularly the structure of the study support. The need to attract and retain skilled professionals has resulted in increasingly competitive, attractive and relevant flexible benefits packages.