Insurance industry question.?

Question

What would be a good way for me to get my foot in the door, so to speak, in any insurance company? I'm talking administrative or clerical work. Is there any basic requirement such as a license, etc. that would be beneficial? Any ideas would be helpful.

Answer 1

What is the job you seek withing the insurance industry?  What state do you live in and what type of insurance are you looking to sale?   Maybe, I can be of help.

Answer 2

There are basically two types of clerical/administrative positions in insurance.  If you are working at the home office of the company most of the jobs are in Customer Service or Claims.  You talk to either agents or customers and using a computer answer questions, make changes, file claims, etc.  You usually do not have to have an insurance license for this but that varies by state and by what you actually do.

If you are working in a local agents office then you are usually doing a little bit of everything; Customer Service, Claims, Sales, Basic Clerical.  Most of the time you are going to need an insurance license because you are going to be the front line person and you are going to have to advise customers on coverages, etc.  In Ohio, you must have an insurance license to take a payment unless you work in the main office.  

Go to your state department of insurance website to read about the licensing laws in your state. Just google Virginia Department of Insurance and you will get there.

You are better off working in the home office of a company.  The reason is because the pay is better, you actually get benefits and there is usually a retirement plan and medical benefits.  In an agency, the agent who owns the agency decides what to pay and what benefits to provide and they are usually pretty bad or non existant.  For example, if you work for Nationwide Insurance Co in a home office you get health insurance, disability insurance, tuition reimbursement, lunch hour, good pay, vacation, etc.  If you work for an agent who represents Nationwide Insurance Co you are going to be lucky to get paid minimum wage and most likely no benefits.

Answer 3

Retired agent had the perfect answer.