As a general rule if you are looking for a new car or a camp trailer or a grocery store you are more interested in the product than you are the person selling the product. The lowest price or the best looks or the overall reputation of the product is the important thing.
Not so with Life Insurance Agents, Doctors, Dentists, Attorneys or Accountants. The people in those professions have knowledge most people just don’t have. They are specialists in their field.
A lot more knowledge and professionalism is required from a Life Insurance agent than from the car salesman or the grocer. Life Insurance agents are required to be licensed in the state in which they operate and must pass a rigid exam to obtain that license. In some States that exam can take up to three hours to complete.
Good agents know how to determine how much insurance is enough for your family, what kinds would work best in your circumstances and how to set it up so that it works as it should when the need for it is at hand. Sometimes you might want to ask yourself which agent do I want to be helping my spouse and children if I have just died.
So how do you find the Agent you should have?
Getting feedback from family or friends is always a good beginning. Somewhere along the line, the person they recommend has done something to impress them in a positive way. It’s a good start. Maybe between them they can you enough names to build a list of candidates to choose from.
From that point on it’s going to be up to you. Interview them. See them in their office or maybe let them come to your home. At this point you might be cautious. At the bottom line these folks make their living on a commission basis and they are going to be looking for a way to sell you their product. This isn’t bad; it’s the way the system works but be cautious. Remember you are taking the inventory of the agent themselves. Do you like the way they present their product? Do they put it in terms that are easy to understand? Would you trust them to deal with your family when you died?
With that end in mind, ask them how settlement options work. It isn’t a trick question and if they are licensed pros they can explain it to you.
Take your time when you talk to them and make sure there is a good fit between you. If they represent a reputable company chances are you are going be purchasing a good product. Whether or not it is the right product for your particular needs may be a different deal. That’s where you interviewing them comes in. Do they know what they are doing? Are they at ease with your family? Do you trust them?
Getting these questions answered is how you select a Life Insurance Agent.