Claims assessors and general insurance brokers are becoming hot commodities, according to recruitment specialist Hays Insurance.

Its April-June forecast reports that the first quarter of the year fuelled a growing demand for skilled and experienced insurance workers.

The floods in Queensland and Victoria, cyclone activity and earthquakes have boosted demand for insurance professionals, but despite this there is still a marked decrease in the number of available industry candidates.

Hays says there is a strong demand for account executives in the Perth region, and for claims consultants.

However, Hays Director Grahame Doyle says the industry needs to look beyond normal assessment criteria and be more flexible in hiring insurance professionals.

Employers are now turning to less qualified staff such as assistant account executives and those with strong claims and underwriting backgrounds.

“We advise employers to consider cultural fit, systems training and transferable skills as a way to negotiate past the shortage,” Mr Doyle said.

“Already there is some evidence of this flexibility, although it is far from widespread.”

Hays says a shortage of applicants has also driven salaries up, and employers are using faster recruitment processes in a bid to “snap up the good ones”.