Careers In Insurance
A career in insurance offers well qualified professionals an interesting and varied life in secure and well-paid circumstances. Because there are now so many different areas of our lives that can be insured, there are plenty of opportunities to gain experience as you work your way up in this dynamic and expanding sector.
Insurance products fall broadly into two categories - regulated and unregulated products. There are companies that specialise in one of these areas and a few very large companies that handle both.
Simple, basic insurance products such as motor, home and contents, or pet care policies fall into the unregulated area of the business. This is because there is no investment element to them. The customer simply pays a premium to receive a certain amount of cover for their risk; a claim is made, and, if you make a claim the insurer pays out.
With a regulated product, such as a pension plan or Unit Trust, the insurer takes the clients money and invests it to create a profit over a period of time, then returns it to the client at the end of the agreed term.
Whilst at starter levels within the industry you could work in either of these areas, as your career progresses you may decide to specialise in one of them as your knowledge and qualifications grow. In the regulated area, there are a number of further qualifications that can be taken.
- Insurance Broker or Insurance Claims Handler - £15-23k per annum
- Financial Administrator (Life and Pensions) - £20-30k per annum
- Senior Insurance Broker or Senior Claims Handler - £25-40k per annum
- Insurance Claims Manager - £30-50k per annum