Head of Product Governance and Claims Oversight

This is a senior first-line role within SquareTrade Europe Insurance S.A. (“STEI”), responsible for ensuring that claims, underwriting, product governance and distribution oversight operate as an integrated framework delivering good customer outcomes, sustainable commercial performance and effective regulatory control. 

The role will be the senior business owner for the controlled activities that shape underwriting outcomes and portfolio performance within STEI, including risk appetite implementation, product design oversight, target market definition, policy terms, pricing inputs, distribution strategy, claims performance, portfolio profitability, fair value assessment and customer outcome monitoring. 

Claims handling, fulfilment and aspects of distribution will be performed by SquareTrade Limited and other outsourced or intermediary providers. The role is therefore focused on oversight, monitoring and challenge on behalf of STEI under its governance and outsourcing framworks rather than day-to-day operational management, ensuring STEI retains effective accountability for regulated activities undertaken on its behalf. 

The role is accountable for ensuring that STEI can demonstrate effective ownership, oversight and challenge of the underwriting, claims and distribution activities that determine customer outcomes and portfolio performance, including where those activities are performed by intermediaries, affiliated group companies or outsourced providers. 

You will be part of an innovative team with a diverse set of responsibilities. You will play a pivotal role in establishing STEI’s footprint in Europe markets utilising in-house capability where appropriate. 

Key Responsibilities 

Underwriting, Product and Distribution Governance 

• Maintain STEI's underwriting and product governance framework, including risk appetite, pricing oversight, product architecture, policy terms, eligibility criteria and portfolio performance controls. 

• Ensure new products and material product changes are subject to appropriate challenge, governance and approval through the Product Oversight and Governance framework. 

• Use claims, complaints, cancellations, distribution performance, profitability analysis, customer outcome monitoring and incident investigations to identify underwriting trends, emerging risks and opportunities to improve product design, pricing and customer outcomes. 

• Work closely with FP&A (Pricing), Risk, Compliance, Customer Service and commercial teams to ensure pricing, claims assumptions, fair value assessments and product governance decisions remain aligned. 

• Support the investigation, remediation and reporting of incidents, ensuring lessons learned are incorporated into product governance, underwriting controls and customer outcome improvements. 

Formal Responsibility for Distribution 

• Act as STEI's formally appointed person with responsibility for insurance distribution and be accountable for ensuring STEI maintains effective governance, oversight, monitoring and reporting in respect of insurance distribution activities undertaken on its behalf. 

• Maintain a risk-based monitoring programme covering distribution conduct, customer outcomes and fair value indicators. 

• Ensure actual or potential customer harm, mis-selling risks or deterioration in customer outcomes are identified, escalated and appropriately remediated. 

Claims Experience and Claims Oversight 

• Maintain first-line oversight of outsourced end-to-end claims journeys in line with STEI’s governance and outsourcing frameworks and prepare an annual board report on the suitability of the outsourced services. 

• Ensure claims processes and controls (playbooks, operating manuals, policy interpretation guidance and escalation routes are approved) are reviewed on behalf of STEI recommending changes as required. 

• Monitor claims MI and fulfilment performance on behalf of STEI with support from the outsourced service provider. 

• Oversee incident investigation, root cause analysis and remediation for significant claims issues, complaints trends, service failures or customer outcome concerns. 

Outsourced and Intermediary Activity Oversight 

• Support STEI's oversight of regulated activities conducted for both the Belgian insurer and its branches through affiliated group companies, intermediaries and outsourced service providers. 

• Ensure STEI receives and reviews appropriate MI, service reporting, quality assurance outputs, audit findings and incident reporting from outsourced