Beginning a new career can be frightening, but it also offers the opportunity for personal growth, change, and higher income opportunities. Even if you don't have any experience in insurance, starting a property and casualty recruitment career might be the right move for you. There are many lucrative advantages to working in this field, and the barrier to entry is surprisingly low. Below you will find some cursory details about what this industry entails and how you can get your foot in the door on a new career.
What is Property and Casualty Insurance?
Despite almost all homeowners having coverage that falls into this category, few people are familiar with the term itself. This is likely because property and casualty insurance does not refer to a specific type of policy, but rather to a family of policies that cover a wide range of different circumstances. The simplest way to define this broad category is to break it down into its separate components: property insurance and casualty insurance.
Property insurance covers physical things. Coverage of this type protects homes, cars, business assets, and so on against a variety of different hazards. A homeowner's property insurance, for example, would cover them in the event of a flood or a significant weather event. Depending on the details of the policy, it may also provide benefits for loss of use, such as paying for temporary accommodations if a home is no longer available.
On the other hand, casualty insurance deals primarily with liability. This type of insurance protects business owners or homeowners against liability incurred as a result of their actions. Casualty insurance springs into action when, for example, a person falls on a poorly maintained sidewalk or parking lot. Most people are legally required to hold casualty insurance for their cars or their homes.
The Advantages of Working as an Insurance Agent
By working in the insurance industry, you will be providing valuable protective services to consumers while also embarking on a potentially highly lucrative career path. Insurance agents enjoy median pay higher than the national average while the industry as a whole has a much lower unemployment rate. In addition to the financial benefits, there are many opportunities to grow and expand your skillset. Even within the property and casualty field, there are a wide range of potential insurance products that cater to everyone from drivers to residential homeowners to commercial aviators. No matter how much you learn, there will always be something new to discover.
Getting Started as an Insurance Agent
Although the insurance industry may seem complicated, it is one of the few professional careers still accessible even if you do not hold a college degree. Instead of requiring a degree, practicing insurance salespeople and underwriters require state licensing. If you intend to sell property and casualty insurance, then you will need a property and casualty license. Many insurance agents hold multiple licenses that allow them to sell a variety of different insurance products, but this isn't required to get started.
Note that states are responsible for their own insurance licensing. By obtaining a license in your state of residency, you will be permitted to sell insurance products in that state. If you intend to sell insurance products to out-of-state individuals, then you will also need to obtain non-resident licensing in those states. The procedures for this vary, but it is generally much more straightforward to obtain non-resident licensing once you already licensed in your state of residence.
As a bonus, many insurance companies will pay for your initial training and licensing. These training programs are often relatively short as well, allowing you to learn what you need to pass your exam in as little as a few weeks or even a few days. Once completed, you will be able to begin your new career as an insurance agent.
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