Insurance Agent - As a career option

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Introduction

To secure a place in the future we must first ensure our safety in the present, because like all of us know, prevention is better than cure.  Insurance means assured remedy in case of dire times.

Insurance has become too ubiquitous in present-day commerce that in 2017, it’s almost foolish to explain to anyone what insurance means, as even cellphones come with an insurance.

Insurance allows you to secure everything from your life to your gadgets, offered by parties/agencies that take care of them in case of any sort of damage.

Whether it be the brand new car your father just brought home or the phone you bought for yourself, all of it can be insured. The roots of insurance can be traced back to ancient Babylonia and China in the 2nd and 3rd millennia B.C. where sea merchants would redistribute their wares in many ships to minimize the loss in case one of the ships wrecked at sea.

Applying the same concept to modern day, insurance companies collect a certain sum of money from their customers (which is called “premium”) and when either of them is in need of help, they provide help based on the respective cover.

Do Insurance Agents provide compensation for damages?

When an insurance agent suggests a policy to his customers, he is selling them an insurance on the behalf of a certain company or agency that he is associated with

So, technically an insurance agent won’t pay for the damages that you suffer in the case of an accident or tragedy to your insured product.

He/she is simply connecting you with an agency that will cover some parts or the entire cost of the damages incurred, depending upon the policy that you buy. The cost of a policy is directly proportional to the damage cover that it will raise.

These policies also have a certain section of terms and conditions as there is a high chance of fake or fraud attempts of deriving compensation.

Which is why once the accident has taken place, an official from the company comes to verify and check the damages and the situation in which it happened, personally to rectify if the charges that you are claiming are true or made-up as a hoax.

After a proper verification of the damage, you are entitled to the monetary or material reimbursement.

List of the most common kinds of Insurance in India

• Health Insurance
• Home Insurance
• Automobile Insurance
• Life Insurance
• Electronic goods Insurance.
  
  

How to become an Insurance Agent?

As a matter of fact, anyone can become an insurance agent. There is, however, basic eligibility for getting into the business. It is advised that aspirants of insurance agencies be college graduates from any discipline.

However, with promising abilities at sales and good conviction power, candidates with even an intermediate of high school degree can become insurance agents.

But just being qualified is not enough. As the role of an insurance agent is to suggest the best-suited policy for an individual, it is essential for an agent to have a proper understanding as well as knowledge of the products of the company that he is serving.

Hence to be a successful insurance agent one need to have the powers of assessment and then convincing powers to sell the scheme that he is presenting. As the subject matter of this profession is sales and sales related benefits, there is not much requirement of an exceptional academic. In fact, it depends most on the street-smarts that counts.

Interested candidates will need a proper licence that is issued by the Insurance Regulatory Development of India (IRDA) that acts as a regulatory body for insurance companies all throughout the nation to sell policies of a particular company only. One simply needs to contact the respective insurance company branch officer.

As per the IRDA norms, one needs to undergo 100 hours of practical experience from an authorised institute. Then, they must pass the pre-recruitment examination conducted by the IRDA or by any insurance company.

After passing the examination one needs to submit their recruitment forms with particular documents. Through this, one shall obtain their insurance licence which is valid for three years only and must be renewed after that.

A day in the life of an Insurance Agent

Hi, there. I’m a life insurance agent and I work for a private company that provides insurance to its hundreds of customers on a daily basis. My work is to reach out to new potential customers and bring them in contact with what my company has to offer.

This requires a good study of the insurance schemes as well as quick thinking for the client that I’m dealing with. To convince someone about something as complex as an insurance policy, I need to be convinced with the idea myself first. Here’s a day from my life:

9:00 AM: The goal of any insurance agent is to spend the majority of time bringing in new business, a considerable amount of time managing existing accounts, and the least amount of time on menial tasks like filling out paperwork.

I’m already at my workplace and have started following-up on a bunch of potential customers. These are typically working professionals who prefer to be contacted early in the day if they are to find the time to listen to what I can do for them.

10:00 AM: The follow-ups are done, and it’s time to look ahead: I have a database of leads that’s provided by the company as well as consolidated duly from a number of other sources, and give it a quick scan.

I’ll be going to town in an hour or two to close a prime deal and to use my time optimally, I’d consider paying a visit to prospective parties who are close by.

12:30 PM: I’m going to see a Mr Srivastava. I contacted him a couple of days ago, and he’s interested in buying life insurance for himself and his wife.  After a brief background check on the client, I put together a short list of packages that might suit him.

He’s in his late 50’s, so my options are quite limited. You see, the company hesitates to provide full insurance coverage to people who are approaching 60 because it’s more likely for them to claim the coverage in the near future.

1:45 PM: I just got done with Mr Srivastava. His wife is eligible for a full coverage right off the bat, but he will have to undergo an extensive medical evaluation before my company will cover him: he’s old enough to be my own father, and I feel a little bad for not being able to do more for him, but I’m just an agent - it’s the company’s policy that governs who gets what.

4:00 PM: Just got a call from Mr Srivastava. He has completed his medical evaluation already and wishes for me to take things forward.

I have to say that he’s a prompt gentleman! I’ll have to pay him another visit right away and get his papers completed for submission early tomorrow.

5:00 PM: I’m back at work, and it’s already five, but I can’t go home just yet - most of my customers are working professionals and will only give me time after working hours. I have to pay visits to two potential customers this evening.

6:30 PM: The first house I visited wanted to know about our policies in detail. They were quite neutral and I’m not sure if they’ll avail us at all, but I make a note to give them a call in two days’ time.

7:45 PM: I’m done with the second party as well. This one looks marginally more promising. Insurance agents get seasons to failures and rejections after a few days, so it’s not like I’m sad about a not-so-fruitful evening. Tomorrow is another day!

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