Job Descriptions: Insurance Broker

Insurance Brokers act as intermediaries acting on behalf of clients ensuring all their insurance needs are covered by appropriate policies.

Graduate Insurance Brokers act as a client's intermediary, ensuring that all the client's needs are covered by appropriate and cost effective policies. Insurance Brokers work to ensure that clients are getting appropriate cover for their clients, whether these are commercial organisations or private clients and individuals.

Insurance Brokers work for their clients to ensure they are getting the cover they need and are well aware of what is offer and what the client needs. They are focused on getting the best deal for their client and make sure that the client is taking steps to help improve any quotes they might receive. They have in-depth knowledge of insurance policies and markets and use this specialist knowledge to get the best cover for their clients.

The role of Insurance Broker is a mixture of client facing, consultative work and insurance specialised position. They are able to understand the needs and operational format of a business or private client and use their knowledge to find the most competitive and relevant cover for them. Graduates who come from business or accountancy degree backgrounds often find Insurance Brokerage a viable career option, especially if they can harness their consultative and personable approach to the needs of the client.

Insurance Broker Salaries

The average starting salary for a graduate Insurance Broker is £29,305. This is a superb starting salary for graduates to begin their careers on. The starting salary is also extremely competitive when compared with similar roles in the field like Insurance Underwriter, Actuary or Chartered Accountant.

Another thing that graduates should be aware of when considering this as a career is that their salary will continue to grow when they become more experienced and undertake professional qualifications, usually provided by the Chartered Insurance Institute.

The Daily Duties of an Insurance Broker

The daily duties of an Insurance Broker are likely to be incredibly varied and dependent on what client's needs and what they are looking for. Graduates working as Insurance Brokers must be prepared to take on clients and have a versatile approach to what clients are looking for, with an eye on arranging things like policy renewals and alternatives when policies are coming to a close. This means that Insurance Brokers are likely to see busier and quieter periods, as well as being expected to work late when policy deadlines are imminent.

Here are a few of the daily duties that graduates can expect to do as Insurance Brokers:

• Client consultation - Client consultation is one of the main features of an Insurance Brokers daily duties. Insurance Brokers will meet with clients, whether they are private individuals or commercial organisations, and discuss what policy arrangements and needs they have. This could include deciding what kind of policy they need, the legality around their requirements and providing clients with information and options form there.
• Negotiating with insurers - The other side of acting as an intermediary would be for Insurance Brokers to discuss prices and polices with the insurance companies themselves. This might be on a bespoke basis to ensure the best deal for their client or a more general approach required for private individuals.
• Policy Management - Policy Management is an important facet of day-to-day life for Insurance Brokers. This means understanding the limitations and coverage of a client's policy and most importantly remembering when they are up. This means anticipating the end of policies and making arrangements for this and renewing where necessary.
• Policy Research - Insurance Brokers must have up-to-date and relevant knowledge of insurance markets and policies. This comes into play when they are providing options for their client and deciding which will be the best course of action. Insurance Brokers are also trusted to be informed about their new developments in the field and to undertake necessary training.
• Recommend risk management changes - As professionals in Insurance and working to improve options for their client, it can sometimes be in the remit of Insurance Brokers to recommend ways that the client help drive down the cost of insurance policies. This might be making changes and improvements to security arrangements for example.

Careers as an Insurance Broker can be rewarding and exciting, allowing graduates to mix a client facing role with a position in an interesting sector like Insurance. The role itself allows graduates work with people as much as they work with the figures and send them on a collaborative journey helping a range of clients. Add to this the large financial reward to this position and graduates can make a happy future for themselves as an Insurance Broker.