An insurance agency and help with choosing insurance
An insurance agency can be useful when a client needs to compare terms, prepare risk information and arrange support for a contract. The value of an intermediary is defined not by loud promises but by transparent authority, competence and the ability to explain the differences between offers.
- The role of an insurance intermediary
- The original detailed text
- When contacting an agency is genuinely useful
- How to check an intermediary
- What an agent may not promise
- Criteria for comparing offers
The role of an insurance intermediary
An intermediary helps to collect data, select options, submit an application and maintain communication. However, the insurance risk is accepted by the insurance company named in the policy. It is the insurer that sets the terms within the limits of the law and the contract, forms reserves and decides on the claim payment.
The original detailed text
Quite often an unfamiliar concept or entity is, by its very nature, something we rarely use. The same goes for the Insurance Agency. What is it? Why does it exist on the insurance market?
So perhaps it is better not to remain in the dark, but to make a small effort after all and broaden your horizons, adding to your erudition? That will undoubtedly give you weighty advantages!
Insurance Agencies appeared immediately after insurance companies did and are partners of those companies.
What, then, are the functions of each?
The unique task of an insurance company is to create an insurance product, provided it holds a licence for that class of insurance. And since the company creates its own product, the rules for using that product are also different at each company (and so are the hidden pitfalls). That is why the insurance products of different insurers differ significantly from one another. Hence the different rates among insurers for the very same class of insurance. The task of the policyholder, that is, you and me, is to choose the rate and insurance programme that best meet our needs at minimum cost.
Bear in mind that insurance, as a financial instrument, is an extremely complex field! That is why insurance agencies work in this field: to make insurance more comfortable and transparent for you.
Think about it: the concept of an agent, like agencies themselves, exists precisely in those industries where it is rather difficult for the average consumer to understand the specifics without special training. Take, for example, an agency on the securities market, a credit agency or a customs agency. Would you dare, without knowing the subtleties of customs practice, to clear a shipment through customs on your own? You can try, in order to answer that question with confidence.
If you approach a representative of a single insurance company (IC), a cocktail of seduction and charm will be poured over you that is hard to resist, because professionals work there who will skilfully mask the shortcomings and advantageously highlight the benefits, giving you no chance to catch your breath. And every IC will try to convince you that its policy is the very best, the most "pink with mother-of-pearl", thereby disorienting you even more.
This is exactly why insurance agencies exist on the insurance market: they are professionals in insurance to a greater extent than the specialists of any one insurance company. After all, you have not forgotten that every insurance company has unique insurance products that are unlike the products of another company? So an insurance agency must know them all perfectly in order to be your competent representative, so that you do not, chasing cheap cover, end up insured with a bankrupt company. So that, even in a global economic crisis, you can be sure of receiving your insurance payment when an insured event occurs!
All these matters fall fully within the competence of the insurance agency, which is not an intermediary between the insurance company and you, the policyholder, as is commonly believed out of ignorance, but your personal qualified representative on the insurance market, who defends your interests before the IC throughout the entire term of insurance. And, note, free of charge!
How can you make sense of the flood of information on your own and not throw money to the wind? And that happens in insurance too, there is no use hiding it.
Let us begin by paying particular attention to the font in which insurance companies print their Rules, the very ones that are an integral part of the policy. Inconvenient to read, isn't it? Too small, too long and unattractive? As practice shows, people do not read them… And then, after a road accident, they are bitterly disappointed when the IC refuses to pay on the basis of those same Rules, which they themselves signed, and which state, for example, that the IC does not pay in the event of a traffic rules violation. The same rules may also contain a hidden deductible, payment for spare parts only without paying for repairs, overnight parking only in a guarded car park, and so on.
How will you obtain compensation from the insurance company in the event of theft if, say, you went to visit someone and left the car overnight under the windows? After all, the rules, say, do not provide for it? Well, no way! Refusal!
Insurance company specialists often do not draw your attention to such trifles. Why would they? You might slam their door and go looking for another company. No, that is not in their interest. And yet every insurance company has its own individual insurance Rules, unlike those of other companies. Are you sure you can handle the insurance terms of, say, ten ICs on your own in order to make an informed choice?
An insurance agent knows these nuances and the dangerous pitfalls; he will not only point out these "trifles" to you but also warn you about the consequences. A proper insurance agent is one who professionally supports you throughout the entire term of insurance, preventing the insurance company from refusing to pay, up to and including representing your interests in court, thereby not abandoning you to your fate.
Ideally, such an insurance agent becomes practically like a member of the family, much like a family doctor or lawyer; this is an established fact.
As a rule, an insurance agent holds the policies of several dozen insurance companies, with which he works under a contract and from which he has powers of attorney. He can issue you a policy himself, and then you will not have to phone insurance companies and travel to their offices, where in every company they will be sure to convince you that they are the best. Thus it is obvious that the insurance agent competently runs a competition among insurance companies for the best insurance terms specifically for you. A kind of tender.
Let us note the main difference between an insurance company and an Insurance Agency! An insurance company, like any commercial structure, exists to make a profit, while the Agency protects the interests of its clients because it works for them. Usually, an insurance agent cooperates with 10-20 insurance companies and will offer you several options for insuring your car, property or business. Knowing full well that you can turn not only to him but also to his competitors, he will choose genuinely good options for you, and will even offer a discount, part of the commission he receives from the insurance company.
As a result, you become the holder of a policy of the insurance company you have chosen, thanks to the insurance agent, and your further relations with the insurer will be no different from what they would have been had you taken out insurance directly at its office.
A real insurance agent is independent of the insurance company, and therefore will always, including in the event of a dispute between the insurance company and you, defend precisely your interests in resolving that dispute. In this case, insurance companies do not, as a rule, enter into conflict with a client of an insurance agent, because that very agent sells the insurance products of those companies, thereby bringing them income. In the event of a conflict, however, the insurance agent can professionally protect your interests, all the way up to the courts… Such cases are rare, though: it is not in the interest of insurance companies to enter into conflict, since the agency may stop selling their insurance product…
As for service offerings…
A proper insurance agent has a legal department that specialises in settling your problems when an insured event occurs. Better still is when, on purchasing a policy, a personal lawyer is assigned to you who is available at any time. Such an agency policy is especially attractive for insuring legal entities with large vehicle fleets. It is precisely here that the advantages of an insurance agency are particularly clear. Believe me, after several years of such a partnership with an agency, it would occur to no one to insure directly with an insurance company. The benefit is too obvious…
Some insurance agencies conclude legal service agreements with clients. The purpose of such an agreement, as a rule, is to take on, in writing, an obligation to provide service (usually free of charge) in the insurance sphere. Under such an agreement, as a rule, no monetary or other material obligations are imposed on you.
This service system exists at the insurance agency "Insurance Center Polis Re" and has already earned the trust of clients and partners!
It would be a mistake to think that the activity of an insurance agency is limited to selling and selecting insurance policies. In fact, the essence of its work is supporting you throughout the entire term of the contract. And if on your own (admittedly at the cost of a pile of time and nerve cells) you can still find a more or less palatable policy, you will get only the policy and nothing more. And then, in disputed situations, you will have to deal with the insurance company in a fair but unequal fight. It is no secret how reluctant insurers are to part with money. For this they have a v-e-r-y rich arsenal of the most sophisticated techniques and a staff of the most seasoned lawyers.
That is why your insurance agency, in a situation where your interests need defending, acts as an enraged bull, ready to sweep aside in its path all the cunning contrivances of an insurer striving not to part with its money.
If receiving money from an insurer is imagined as a bullfight (and most often that is just what it looks like), then the bull in this bullfight is the insurance agency defending your interests. In our company, for example, that is exactly how it looks. Our lawyers are in no way inferior in professionalism to the insurer's specialists.
We, as an insurance agency, try, using our contacts at the insurance company, not to let a situation reach a critical point. And if a conflict does flare up, we will guarantee you legal assistance. But matters very rarely reach full-scale hostilities, thanks to the fact that all the "pitfalls" must be eliminated by the agency even before you sign the contract. Do you feel the difference?
Thus, by observing elementary "safety rules", you can end up, in the final analysis, with an insurance policy from a reliable, financially stable insurance company, and with a personal manager from the insurance agency for the entire term of insurance. What a stroke of luck! With such an agency, even the devil himself holds no fear!
In conclusion I would like to say: the task of an insurance agency, as your helper, is to save your time, nerves and money, which the team of specialists at the insurance agency "Insurance Center Polis Re" successfully puts into practice. Our aim is to show you in practice that we are one of the best agencies on the insurance market, making insurance comfortable and attractive for you.
Insurance, as the most dependable instrument for financial protection of our property, was, is and will be! Just as there were, are and will be on the Kazakhstan market conscientious and decent insurers and insurance agencies, for whom their own reputation is the main capital.
Which insurance to choose is for you alone to decide! We do not impose on you any of the offers, nor the insurance procedure in general. The insurance agency "Insurance Center Polis Re" means confidence and security, a guarantee of payments on time and in full! We sell not insurance policies but Security and Confidence!
If you still have doubts, call us, and we will convince YOU !!!
When contacting an agency is genuinely useful
- you need to compare several complex offers against the same criteria;
- a company is insuring a vehicle fleet, property or several types of liability;
- technical data has to be collected and a risk survey arranged;
- the client has no time to coordinate correspondence with several insurers;
- support with contract amendments and insured events is important.
For a simple standard policy, a client can enter into the contract directly online. An intermediary is justified when their involvement delivers measurable benefit: a clear comparison, fewer errors, timely documents and quality support.
How to check an intermediary
- Clarify their status and authority. Ask them to name the insurers whose interests they represent and to show the basis on which they are entitled to place cover.
- Check the insurer. The contract must state the full name of a licensed insurance organisation.
- Find out the remuneration model. The commission must not be hidden behind unclear payments or transfers to personal accounts.
- Obtain several options. The comparison should take account of coverage, exclusions, limits, deductible and claims settlement.
- Check the payment channel. Use the official bank details and keep proof of payment.
- Keep the documents. The policy, the rules, applications and correspondence must be available to the client.
What an agent may not promise
An intermediary cannot guarantee that a future event will be recognised as an insured event, the exact amount of the payment before an assessment, or the absence of any exclusions. Nor should they pass off their own advice as an official decision of the insurer or promise influence over the outcome thanks to "connections".
Quality support is built on documents: timely notification, recording the circumstances, a correct application, submission of the full set of papers and monitoring of deadlines. In a dispute, a complaint, the insurance ombudsman and other mechanisms established by law are used.
Criteria for comparing offers
- the list of insured risks and exclusions;
- the sum insured and liability limits;
- the deductible and how it is applied;
- territory and period of validity;
- requirements for the security, storage or operation of the insured object;
- the procedure for notification and inspection;
- deadlines and documents for payment;
- the insurer's financial stability and service.
Support with an insured event
An intermediary can remind you of the procedure, help to prepare an application, check that the documents are complete and monitor communication. But they do not replace the police, an accident commissioner, a loss adjuster, a medical organisation, the insurance ombudsman or a court. The limits of the service should be recorded in advance.
Red flags
- an offer significantly below the market without an explanation of the terms;
- a refusal to name the insurance company before payment;
- a request to hand over a confirmation code, a password or an electronic digital signature (EDS);
- payment to a personal card without an official document;
- a promise of a guaranteed payment for any event;
- pressure to sign the contract immediately;
- no insurance rules or draft contract.
Services under compulsory classes of insurance are provided only by insurance companies and branches of non-resident insurance organisations that hold the relevant licence in Kazakhstan. An agent or consultant helps with the paperwork but does not become the insurer.
Conclusion
A good insurance agency saves time and reduces the risk of errors, but the client still needs to read the contract, check the insurer and understand the intermediary's authority. Independence is demonstrated by transparency and objective comparison, not by a name alone.
This material is for information purposes. The original text above has been preserved as an author's publication of its period; current decisions should be taken on the basis of the documents in force.