Insider Tips: What makes a great marine underwriter

As ITIC marks 100 years of supporting marine professionals, Alistair Mactavish, Chief Underwriting Officer and Chief Operating Officer at ITIC, shares his insight into what defines excellence in marine underwriting today and offers some insider tips. While tools, risks, and regulations evolve, the core qualities of great underwriting remain rooted in deep understanding, fairness, and a commitment to the people behind the policy.

“The most important thing is understanding what the assured does,” Alistair explains. “Whether it is a shipbroker, a naval architect, or a marine surveyor, you have to delve into the details of how they work, where mistakes might occur, and what the consequences could be.”

For ITIC, this goes beyond simply knowing the profession in theory; it involves engaging directly with the assureds, often face to face, and building relationships that last for decades.

“Some of ITIC’s assureds have been insured with us for a hundred years,” Alistair adds. “And some of them have never had a claim. But we still visit, we still talk. We need to know and understand their world.”

That level of connection is enabled by ITIC’s distinctive structure. Unlike most insurers, ITIC is a mutual, meaning there are no shareholders to satisfy, only members to serve. “We are not here to deny claims,” Alistair says. “It is our ethos to be helpful. That’s something we take seriously.

Part of that ethos is ITIC’s discretionary insurance model. If a claim is rejected by the management team, a member can appeal to the board, which is made up of experienced professionals from across the marine industry.

“The board is made up from the membership and comprises a variety of ship agents, brokers, managers, etc, people who understand the situations our assureds face,” says Alistair. “Sometimes, even when something isn’t explicitly covered, the board might decide ITIC should help anyway. It’s about fairness.”

In recent years, ITIC has also adopted advanced data tools to improve underwriting decisions. While Alistair admits to still regularly using Excel, “I’m a bit old school,” he adds, the introduction of systems like Microsoft Power BI has transformed how ITIC assesses risk.

“It’s an eye-opener. You can drill straight into loss ratios and compare data by broker or line of business. It means we can quote faster and more accurately, and that’s what today’s market demands.”

Speed, however, doesn’t mean cutting corners.

“We don’t bow to commercial pressure,” Alistair says. “We review our underwriting guidelines annually so there’s fairness across the board. If a broker gives us a target premium, we might adjust deductibles or limits to reach it, but we won’t reduce prices just to win a deal.”

This balance between commerciality and principle is one reason ITIC has remained a trusted name for a century. That trust also comes from staying ahead of new challenges, especially those related to regulation. As frameworks like FuelEU and the EU ETS begin to impact ship managers, ITIC actively helps educate its members.

“We’re already observing the impacts,” Alistair notes. “We’re assisting them in understanding their responsibilities before problems arise, rather than after mistakes occur.”

One of the most distinctive aspects of ITIC is the role of the account executive. Unlike many insurers, where departments are divided by function, ITIC’s account executives handle everything: underwriting, claims, sales, renewals, and member service. Even Alistair, as part of the senior leadership, continues to manage regions and work directly with assureds.

“As account executives, we each have our own geographical area, and we know our assureds well. We seek out new business, manage claims, provide quotes, and handle all other related tasks. This provides us with a thorough understanding of the risks, and we maintain constant contact with our clients. In the marine industry, such personal relationships still matter. It’s part of what makes this world different,” Alistair adds.

That consistency also fosters internal trust. “Everyone at ITIC, from junior account execs to the CEO, does the same core work,” says Alistair. “Everyone has a voice at the table. Everyone understands the product. Everyone sees the client.”

This alignment not only enhances client service but also strengthens culture. “There’s no disconnect between leadership and the frontline. We’re all in the same business, solving the same problems, sharing knowledge, learning from each other.”

So, what makes a great marine underwriter?

According to Alistair, it’s not just about crunching numbers or issuing quotes. It’s about people.

“You have to understand the risk, of course,” he says. “But more importantly, you need to understand the person behind the risk. What they do, what keeps them awake at night and how we can be there when they need us.”

After 100 years, ITIC hasn’t just survived; it has thrived by putting their assureds first, being genuinely helpful, and ensuring that everyone in the team understands what it means to walk in their clients’ shoes. And perhaps that’s the real secret to underwriting success, not just knowing the industry, but understanding and caring about the people in it.