Job Description

Purpose of the Role:
At Dis-Chem Life, we understand that underwriting is more than a tick-box exercise it is a critical decision-making function that balances risk, responsibility, and fairness.
The Underwriting Assessor is central to this Function.
As our Underwriting Assessor, you are trusted to assess, analyse, and finalise life insurance applications using Dis-Chem Lifes underwriting rules, risk philosophy, and digital tools.
You will interact directly with intermediaries, reinsurers, and internal teams, applying judgement and precision to every case.
Whether its medical disclosures, financial capacity, or occupational risk, your decisions help shape the quality of our book and our reputation.
This role demands analytical strength, strong communication, and a commitment to fair and compliant underwriting.
Its about making the right call and standing by it.
Role Summary
The Underwriting Assessor is responsible for assessing individual life applications for both personal and business protection products. The role evaluates disclosures and supporting documents to determine insurability, using a combination of digital tools, manual decisioning, and reinsurance consultation.
The Underwriting Assessor ensures underwriting decisions align with Dis-Chem Lifes risk philosophy, operational turnaround standards, and compliance expectations. This individual is a key support to the sales and QA teams and serves as the first point of contact for underwriting escalations and queries.
Benefits:

• Be part of a high-integrity team focused on delivering quality and fairness in every decision.
• Gain exposure to AI-led underwriting and work directly with reinsurers on complex case assessments.
• Competitive salary and opportunities for professional development within a fast-scaling insurer.

Key Responsibilities:
Underwriting Risk Assessment

• Independently assess and finalise life insurance applications in line with Dis-Chem Lifes underwriting policies and delegated authority limits.
• Evaluate all core risk components including medical disclosures, financial standing, occupational and territorial risk, lifestyle indicators, and insurability history.
• Apply appropriate underwriting loadings, exclusions, postponements, or declines in line with underwriting guidelines and reinsurer mandates.
• Maintain high standards of accuracy, clarity, and auditability in all case decisions and notes.

Operational Excellence

• Finalise underwriting decisions within defined service level agreements
• Accurately update internal systems, load decisions, and apply underwriting codes where applicable.
• Monitor and manage your own work queue in accordance with turnaround standards, complexity, and escalation procedures.
• Support audit readiness and participate in quality assurance reviews or calibration sessions.
• Maintain accurate records for internal quality checks and external audits.

Stakeholder Support & Escalation Handling

• Provide support to the Sales, Broker, QA, and Admin teams by responding to underwriting queries.
• Participate in training initiatives and present underwriting-related content to internal teams when required.
• Act as the first-line point of escalation for complex cases and policy rule interpretations.

Digital Underwriting & Systems Contribution

• Operate within and provide feedback on the digital underwriting platform and rule engine.
• Identify rule logic gaps, edge cases, or system errors that need escalation or revision.
• Support system testing and enhancement initiatives to improve STP (Straight-Through Processing) rates.

Technical Skills:

• Deep understanding of life underwriting principles including medical, financial, and lifestyle risk assessment.
• Proficient in underwriting across income protection, funeral, and business life cover.
• Familiar with reinsurer communication protocols and facultative referral standards.
• Comfortable navigating digital underwriting systems and working in tech-enabled environments.
• Sound knowledge of relevant legislation (FAIS, POPIA, TCF, and insurance-related compliance).

Soft Skills:

• Applies rigorous checks when assessing documents, disclosures, and system entries.
• Stands by underwriting calls with clarity and consistency.
• Able to simplify technical explanations for both internal and external audiences.
• Acts with fairness, impartiality, and full responsibility for risk decisions.
• Thrives in a hybrid, fast-paced, AI-enhanced underwriting environment.
• Understands the importance of supporting Sales and QA while upholding risk principles.

Experience:

• Minimum 35 years experience as a Life Underwriter (retail or business).
• Experience in Underwriting Personal and Business Protection Products
• Experience in AI/digital underwriting environments is advantageous.
• Previous support or collaboration with Sales, QA, or Broker channels is beneficial.

Qualifications:

• Matric/Grade 12 Essential
• Diploma/Degree in Medical, Financial, or Insurance-related field Advantageous
• FAIS-compliant or working towards RE5 Advantageous