Careers in the Insurance Industry

Are you looking for a career in the insurance industry? Here are some tips and facts from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. The insurance industry includes insurance carriers that provide insurance and agencies and brokerages that sell insurance policies for insurance carriers. The insurance industry also offers jobs in companies that provide insurance-related services like claims adjustment and administration of insurance and pension funds.

Insurance carriers offer a number of insurance policies to be sold by agents and brokers. Life insurance offers financial protection for beneficiaries of the policy when the policy holder dies. Health insurance pays expenses for medical care, accidents and illnesses. Property-casualty insurance is a broad category including auto insurance, home insurance and renters insurance. This type of insurance covers loss or damage to property due to hazards like theft, fire or natural disaster. Liability insurance is another type of insurance that includes auto insurance, home insurance and renters insurance and it covers financial responsibility for injuries to others or damages to property. Some insurance carriers have also begun entering aspects of the financial industry and sell financial products like securities, mutual funds and retirement plans.

Insurance industry employment facts:

* In 2006 the insurance industry had around 2.3 million wage and salary jobs.
* Insurance carriers accounted for 62 percent of those jobs
* The other 38 percent of jobs were in brokerages, agencies and other insurance-related service providers.
* Insurance carriers often employed more than 250 workers.
* Agencies and brokerages typically employed fewer than 20 workers.
* Around 44 percent of insurance workers are in administrative support jobs.
* About 29 percent of insurance workers are in management or business and financial operations careers.
* Close to 16 percent of insurance workers are in insurance sales.

One major change in the insurance industry in recent years is utilization of the Internet. Insurance providers are using the Internet to reach new customers and to provide information and services to existing customers. Many insurance providers are going beyond simply posting company information online to give customers assess to online billing and account information and some even allow customers to make claims online. Another use of the Internet is to provide insurance rate quotes for different types of policies. This allows insurance seekers to easily compare insurance quotes from a number of insurance providers.

Working conditions in the insurance industry vary depending on the job. Many insurance industry workers have a typical 5-day, 40-hour workweek, but executives and management in the industry often work more than 40 hours. Other jobs in the insurance industry require irregular hours, possibly outside the office setting. Sales workers need to be available to their customers at all times in case of claims. Because of the amount of irregular business hours, the insurance industry offers many opportunities for part-time work. In fact part-time workers make up eight percent of the insurance industry workforce.

For more information visit the Bureau of Labor Statistics page on the insurance industry.