Life insurance agents play many roles in today's business environment. They have their traditional role of selling policies that pay a death benefit. They also have many other skills. Those skills include pension plan set-up, estate planning, and retirement planning. All states require life insurance continuing education credits for bi-annual license renewal. CE is key to maintaining and building agent skills.
Since the recession of 2008, the industry has blossomed. Prior to the recession, many companies eliminated agent positions. Instead, they let banks, stockbrokers, financial advisers, and internet sites produce their sales volume. Financial planners lambasted whole life policies. They advised their clients to buy inexpensive term policies. They told clients to invest the money they saved in stocks or mutual funds. Then, the stock market collapsed. When securities values tanked, whole life policies still retained full value.
Based on the stability of the product, there is now a large demand for agents. Companies are recruiting former lawyers, bankers, mortgage brokers, and real estate agents. The industry is grueling in the early years. Few agents earn more than $35,000 in their second years. After four years, only twenty percent stay in the field. Agents who stick it out into the fifth year, however, may find themselves making $100,000 or more.
Agents can take a wide variety of CE courses. Regulatory and firm element courses may include suitability and ethics, money laundering prevention, securities, topics in economics, and FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) rules and regulations. Other courses may include distribution planning, annuities, and accelerated benefits. Agents can also study health savings accounts, Medicaid and Medicare, and health and benefits insurance. Each state has its own CE requirements. License renewal usually must occur biannually. Some states require as few as eighteen hours. Other states require as many as thirty. Each state's department of insurance has authority over renewal requirements. Some states require specific coursework. For instance, nineteen states require consumer protection and ethics courses.
Each state has its own CE expectations. License renewal most often occurs every two years. States can require from around twenty to around thirty hours of courses. State insurance departments decide what the expectations will be. Some of them require very specific coursework. For example, nineteen states, as of recent data, required consumer protection and ethics training.
Choosing an education provider can be daunting. Agents have to do their own due diligence. A referral from a firm or colleague is helpful. Agents should make sure that the CE provider has experience and a good reputation. They should look for online, live, and textbook courses. The coursework should be approved nationwide and accredited by the state. Some firms reimburse employees for CE, and others require the agent to pay out-of-pocket.
Firms looking to push many agents through CE should take some extra steps. The most important is to make sure that the provider offers a wide variety of courses, and that the courses cover all of the services that the firm offers. This means checking for CPA, CIMA, ChFC, CFP, and CLU offerings. Small firms should seek out a local government compliance officer. Large firms should hire a compliance specialist with Series 7, 24, and 63 licensure.
All agents in all states must complete life insurance continuing education requirements. Agents should research their state's requirements and their CE provider before signing on for classes. Agents and their companies must make compliance for CE a high priority.
Since the recession of 2008, the industry has blossomed. Prior to the recession, many companies eliminated agent positions. Instead, they let banks, stockbrokers, financial advisers, and internet sites produce their sales volume. Financial planners lambasted whole life policies. They advised their clients to buy inexpensive term policies. They told clients to invest the money they saved in stocks or mutual funds. Then, the stock market collapsed. When securities values tanked, whole life policies still retained full value.
Based on the stability of the product, there is now a large demand for agents. Companies are recruiting former lawyers, bankers, mortgage brokers, and real estate agents. The industry is grueling in the early years. Few agents earn more than $35,000 in their second years. After four years, only twenty percent stay in the field. Agents who stick it out into the fifth year, however, may find themselves making $100,000 or more.
Agents can take a wide variety of CE courses. Regulatory and firm element courses may include suitability and ethics, money laundering prevention, securities, topics in economics, and FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) rules and regulations. Other courses may include distribution planning, annuities, and accelerated benefits. Agents can also study health savings accounts, Medicaid and Medicare, and health and benefits insurance. Each state has its own CE requirements. License renewal usually must occur biannually. Some states require as few as eighteen hours. Other states require as many as thirty. Each state's department of insurance has authority over renewal requirements. Some states require specific coursework. For instance, nineteen states require consumer protection and ethics courses.
Each state has its own CE expectations. License renewal most often occurs every two years. States can require from around twenty to around thirty hours of courses. State insurance departments decide what the expectations will be. Some of them require very specific coursework. For example, nineteen states, as of recent data, required consumer protection and ethics training.
Choosing an education provider can be daunting. Agents have to do their own due diligence. A referral from a firm or colleague is helpful. Agents should make sure that the CE provider has experience and a good reputation. They should look for online, live, and textbook courses. The coursework should be approved nationwide and accredited by the state. Some firms reimburse employees for CE, and others require the agent to pay out-of-pocket.
Firms looking to push many agents through CE should take some extra steps. The most important is to make sure that the provider offers a wide variety of courses, and that the courses cover all of the services that the firm offers. This means checking for CPA, CIMA, ChFC, CFP, and CLU offerings. Small firms should seek out a local government compliance officer. Large firms should hire a compliance specialist with Series 7, 24, and 63 licensure.
All agents in all states must complete life insurance continuing education requirements. Agents should research their state's requirements and their CE provider before signing on for classes. Agents and their companies must make compliance for CE a high priority.
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