Level 1 Underwriter

About us

Vida Bank provides competitive savings products through Vida Savings and specialist mortgage solutions through Vida Homeloans. Our mortgage business supports Buy to Let (BTL) and residential borrowers (ROO) who find themselves underserved elsewhere. Our mortgage customers range from Buy to Let investors to the self-employed and customers with multiple jobs. Our savings proposition is delivered online via our website and is focused on providing savers with fair, transparent and competitive rates. Our typical customers are active savers, who tend to look beyond their current account provider for savings accounts.

Our business model and strategy are underpinned by our core purpose to ‘Help More People Find a Place to call Home’. We are here to help the underserved, especially those with more nuanced personal circumstances or borrowing needs who are not able to access a mortgage from a mainstream mortgage lender. Working exclusively with intermediary partners, we combine cutting-edge technology with skilled and caring underwriting expertise to solve complex customer problems. As a fully regulated UK-based bank with ambitious growth aspirations, we recognise the importance of having a clearly articulated culture strategy and the need to actively manage how it embeds in the business together with the behaviours which exemplify it.

As a recognised Best Companies Top 100 mid-sized company to work for in the UK and a finalist at the Financial Reporter Women’s Recognition Awards, we take pride in our diverse workforce, championing both ethnic and gender diversity through our EDI commitments. Having met the target set by being a member of the HM Treasury Women in Finance Charter, we have 50% of senior management roles filled by women.

With offices in London, Newcastle and Skipton, we bring our teams together regularly to collaborate and empower our colleagues to have more choice around when and where they work on the days they are not in the office, with colleagues working remotely in various locations across the UK.

Our Culture

We are proud to have built a culture founded on an ethos of caring, and that sits at the heart of our Vida Values, driving the way we run our business, support our customers and other stakeholders on a daily basis. We genuinely care about delivering the right outcomes for all our stakeholders who we consider through the cultural framework as our customers, colleagues, company and communities that we operate in. By joining Vida you will have a sense of belonging in what is a diverse and collaborative environment, where you will be empowered to take responsibility for driving delivery. We embrace a diversity of backgrounds and experiences in our people, in the deeply held belief that better outcomes are achieved for customers when our colleagues are better placed to empathise with and understand their unique circumstances. From application to interview, we place inclusion at the heart of all we do.

Role Overview:

We are a dynamic specialist lender focused on providing tailored financial solutions to underserved markets, including complex residential, buy-to-let, bridging, and commercial lending. Our mission is to deliver fast, flexible, and responsible lending decisions backed by deep market expertise and a commitment to service excellence.

As an Underwriter with a focus on Valuations and ID&V, you will play a critical role in ensuring the integrity of our lending decisions by validating asset values and verifying applicant identities in line with regulatory and internal standards.

Key Responsibilities:

• Valuation Assessment: Review and assess property valuations (AVMs, desktop and full valuations) to ensure accuracy and alignment with Vida’s lending criteria.
• Liaise with Valuation Panel Managers to resolve discrepancies or request revaluations when necessary.
• Flag valuation risks or anomalies.
• Maintain detailed records of decisions and rationale.
• ID&V Verification: Conduct thorough ID&V checks using internal systems and third-party tools to confirm applicant identity and prevent fraud.
• Ensure compliance with KYC (Know Your Customer), AML (Anti-Money Laundering), and other regulatory requirements.
• Escalate suspicious activity or inconsistencies in line with internal policy and procedures.
• Maintain detailed records of decisions and rationale.

Requirements:

• Strong understanding of property valuation methodologies & ID&V processes.
• Familiarity with AML/KYC regulations and fraud prevention best practices.
• Proficient in using valuation and ID verification platforms.
• Excellent analytical skills and attention to detail when reviewing technical reports.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, high-volume environment with competing priorities.
• Strong decision-making skills.

Our Values

Our values are well established and recognised throughout our organisation. They provide a frame of reference for the behaviours expected from our colleagues every day. We find ways to break old conventions, especially those which cause exclusion or customer harm. We look for these qualities when hiring new talent into the organisation, and they underpin our approach to personal development and performance management for all our people. At the heart of this is the fact we care about our Customers, Our Colleagues and our Communities. We are:

• Visionary - We innovate and break old habits, thinking big and pushing boundaries together as one team.
• Inclusive - We value each other’s differences and work to see people for who they really are.
• Dynamic - We are flexible and fast, cutting through complexity and never accepting second best.
• Authentic - We are honest and genuine, what you see is what you get.

Benefits

We offer a comprehensive benefits package to support our employees’ professional and personal needs. Further details can be provided upon application.