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- Find the best insurance products for your clients and manage the relationship between them and the insurance company
- Requires an organised, methodical approach, and the ability to gather and analyse information
- With experience you could move into senior management or start your own company
You'll work in either retail or commercial insurance. In retail insurance you'll find general cover for individuals or companies in areas of insurance like motor, home, pet or travel cover for individuals, property damage, and business interruption for companies. In commercial insurance, you'll deal with more complex requests in areas like marine, aviation, oil and gas, and financial.
DAY-TO-DAY DUTIES
- Gather information from clients to assess their insurance needs and risk
- Research insurance policies
- Arrange insurance cover for clients and submit details to insurers
- Negotiate the best policy terms with insurers
- Renew or change existing policies
- Make sure the cover and paperwork you provide meets legal requirements
- Collect premiums and process accounts
- Advise customers who are making a claim
- Keep records using IT systems
- Issue documentation
- Prepare reports for insurance underwriters and surveyors in complex cases
DAY-TO-DAY ENVIRONMENT
You'll mainly be office-based, contacting clients by phone and email, but you might travel locally to visit client companies.
You'll need
To be an insurance broker, you'll need customer service and excellent verbal communication skills, the ability to sell products and services, thoroughness and attention to detail, initiative, the ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure, and persistence and determination.
You could do a degree before applying for a place on an insurance company's graduate training scheme, in subjects like business studies, finance, surveying, or engineering. Relevant work experience while you're studying will be beneficial, such as through an internship.
You could also become an insurance broker through an insurance professional higher apprenticeship.
Employers usually prefer to take on trainees with a minimum of GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), including English and maths, and A levels. IT skills are also important. You'd usually start in jobs such as an insurance technician, junior account handler or trainee broker. You can then work your way up to broker, gaining experience and insurance industry qualifications through the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII).
If you have a degree, you could join a large insurance broking firm's graduate training scheme. Most degree subjects are accepted, but a business or maths degree might be advantageous due to high competition.
CAREER PROSPECTS
With experience, you could move into account handling, claims broking, or a business development role. You could specialise in an area of insurance, progress into management, or move into other types of insurance work like loss adjusting, underwriting or compliance.