August 3, 2010

How Sales Agents Make Money From Your Policy

People often wonder how sales agents make money from the an insurance policy. After getting an auto insurance quote from a sales agent, it is at times difficult to tell if one may find other auto insurance quotes from a different company which may be less expensive. Sometimes is just seems like all sales agents in the insurance industry are out to make a quick easy dollar. The way sales agents make money from one's policy is by getting a percentage of the policy costs in the form of a commission.

The auto insurance industry is a very competitive market. Sales agents are generally concerned about producing a high volume of sales by providing as many auto insurance quotes as possible. An auto insurance sales agent is known as a producer with the insurance industry. Most insurance agents have a contractual agreement to only work for one company. The majority of insurance companies pay agents strictly on a commission basis. The commission structure in the United States for sales agents is roughly around ten to fourteen percent of the total policy cost for both new policies and renewals. A higher premium means more money for the sales agent. Some agents are given a percentage of one's monthly premium. The pay structure of sales agents varies for different insurance companies. Some companies offer a combination of a salary and commission, while others give agents incentives for closing costs and provide them with bonuses. Most sales agents will receive bonuses if they hit a certain number of sales.

A company may provide the agent a fixed salary and then they will also take in a percentage of the auto policies monthly premium collected. The standard rate an agent might get would be around twenty five percent of a monthly premium. Many regular insurance companies with recognizable names who are not brokers are more likely to pay their sales team hourly because they do not charge broker fees.

In most cases auto insurance commissions are a sales agents bread and butter. An agent may provide an auto insurance quote that is much too high for the customer, and with smooth maneuvering be able to close the sale. When an agent cross sells a policy to a customer, this helps the agent accumulate more business. Cross selling is when an agent sells additional products or services to a customer. Cross selling includes the technique of up-selling additional products to existing customers. Insurance sales agents work long hours. They are constantly generating leads, making sales calls, and monitoring people to find out who is in need of an insurance policy. Online quotes help people eliminate many hassles and get more reliable information.