What is a captive contracted insurance agent?

by carefreelayner07 » Tue Jan 27, 2009 04:36 am

I am applying ofr a job in which they will pay for me to be trained and take their required tests. But every 5 seconds on the application I run into something that says NOTE: that you are aware that you will not be an employee of "said" insurance company but will be a captive contracted insurance agent. please help... what does this mean?

Total Comments: 6

Posted: Tue Jan 27, 2009 05:59 am Post Subject:

Well, that means that you are not entitled to receive salary from the employing insurance company, you would operate as an independent agent while selling policies of that particular company. If you can't achieve the target set by the insurance company they may also decide not to renew the contract.

Hope the experts would throw some more light into this matter.

Posted: Tue Jan 27, 2009 06:07 am Post Subject:

A captive agent can work either as a full-time employee of a company or may decide to become an independent contractor, but both ways he would only be selling policies of one company. Unlike an independent agent, the captive contractor can't offer policies from different companies to his/her client, hence may face limitation in offering a better deal.

An independent contractor will only receive commission on the sales, thus saving the initial expenses of the company on a full-time captive agent. However, as an independent contractor you can work on your own accord and convenience. That's surely an advantage.

Regards,
Juanita

Posted: Tue Jan 27, 2009 01:20 pm Post Subject:

Many companies have captive only agents, ie allstate, state farm, shelter, american family and on and on, others sell thru independent agents, ie progressive, gieco etc...i know many captives, that make tons, of money, i also know many independents that do the same...also know many that struggle on both sides of the fence...one of the good things about a captive, is (as you know) they train you and pay for it, some give you a six month or more salary to get you going and some exsisting book of business...it just depends no what suits you best...some start as captives, and then a few years down the road switch to independents (depending of course on their contract) we have both on this site...so you should get more information soon.

Posted: Tue Jan 27, 2009 01:36 pm Post Subject:

Hi Juanita,

Don't you think that depending on the sales volume sometimes a contractor's commissions could even surpass the salaries drawn by his fellow colleagues?

Well, I understand the effort he'd need to put in order to pull up his performance to that level though!

Another thing-

Unlike an independent agent, the captive contractor can't offer policies from different companies to his/her client, hence may face limitation in offering a better deal.



It seems quite interesting..do you mean to say that a captive contractor has lesser sale-closures due to limited options?

Roddick

Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 06:54 am Post Subject:

Don't you think that depending on the sales volume sometimes a contractor's commissions could even surpass the salaries drawn by his fellow colleagues?



Well, it may since it'd depend upon the agents personal skills. However, as Lori has mentioned a full-time captive agents may receive compensation from the insurance company, which is a great support for a newbie in the business. It'd help you get going if you have to earn from the very fast day in the market.

It seems quite interesting..do you mean to say that a captive contractor has lesser sale-closures due to limited options?



No, success in the insurance business largely depends upon individual qualities, hence if someone is good enough, business wouldn't be scares for him. However, an independent agents enjoys the freedom to look into different insurance companies in order to find a suitable coverage for his clients, while a captive contractor is still a captive agent, who can only offer the polices of his employer company.

Hope it clears some doubts.

Regards,
Juanita

Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 03:43 pm Post Subject:

I would also like to add that usually a captive contractor receives a higher commision rate as well.

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