An insurance broker is a professional who works in the insurance industry as a buyer’s agent instead of a seller’s agent. On a daily basis, an insurance broker’s goal is to get the best coverage at the best price for clients, which entails a variety of activities. Insurance brokers must communicate with a variety of insurance companies, clients, and sometimes other brokers, and the ability to communicate and get along with people is the most important skill an insurance broker can have.
The requirements to become an insurance broker differ depending on the state in which the broker wishes to work. College degrees are often strongly recommended or required, and brokers frequently begin their careers as agents, working for insurance companies to gain industry experience. Prospective brokers can take training courses to familiarize themselves with the industry and the law, which may be required law. Someone who wants to be an insurance broker can take a test for licensure after gaining the necessary education and experience, at which point he or she will be authorized to work in a brokerage as a broker or to run a brokerage.
Unlike insurance agents, who are primarily concerned with serving the interests of the companies for which they work, insurance brokers are concerned with serving the interests of their clients. When a client walks into an insurance broker’s office and expresses a need for insurance, the agent discusses the options with the broker, and the broker gets a sense of the type of insurance coverage that would be best for the client. With this information, the broker can shop the client’s file around to a number of insurance companies in the hopes of finding one that is a good fit for the client.
Brokers are frequently available to assist with the purchase of insurance packages, such as life, home, and health insurance. They can also assist their clients with financial planning in some parts of the world, and they may be able to assist them when negotiating with insurance companies. For example, rather than fighting the insurance company directly, a client who is denied benefits under a health care plan might ask the insurance broker to help.
A lot of time is spent in the office insurance brokers. Clients and insurance companies are communicated with in person, over the phone, and via electronic media such as email. Because many insurance systems are computerized, insurance brokers must have computer skills in order to obtain bids, sign contracts, and collect information for clients at the touch of a button.