People employed in part-time insurance jobs may work as agents, associates, underwriters, claims adjustors or in various other types of roles. As with people employed in full-time insurance jobs, part-time employees often have to obtain licenses; that process usually involves attending a training course that is followed by an examination. In many instances, these workers are employed by insurance firms or agencies although some part-time workers are self-employed.
Agents market insurance policies to individuals and business entities. Typically, agents receive their pay in the form of commission rather than an hourly wage or an annual salary. Professionals who work in other industries sometimes work in part-time insurance jobs as agents in order to generate supplemental income. A fully licensed agent can sell life, health and property insurance policies and these salespeople normally receive residual income payments whenever the policyholder makes a premium payment. Self-employed agents can sell insurance products on behalf of many different companies whereas those employed by a particular firm can often only sell in-house products.
Associates are individuals who prepare insurance documents and liaise between agents and clients. While agents usually have to be licensed, in many nations associates do not have to undergo any formal industry related training. Aside from handling client interactions, associates are often also responsible for mailing signed contracts to insurance firms and for performing other basic administrative duties. The people who work in part-time insurance jobs are often associates, because many agents do not write sufficient numbers of policies to warrant the employment of a full-time assistant.
Underwriters approve or reject applications for insurance. These individuals are often people who have completed undergraduate actuarial or finance degrees since the decision process involves complex risk calculations. While major companies often employ full-time underwriters, qualified underwriters can sometimes find part-time insurance jobs at smaller firms that handle lower volumes of applications.
Claims adjustors investigate insurance claims on behalf of the insurer. These individuals must visit homes to determine the extent of the damage whenever a homeowner submits a property insurance claim. Likewise, adjustors inspect vehicles that have been involved in motor accidents and verify information related to life or health insurance claims. Some types of claims such as those related to water damage or wind damage are seasonal and usually peak during periods of the year when hurricanes and other types of bad weather are prevalent. Therefore, many firms choose to employ part-time adjustors rather than full time workers, as the workload is often uneven throughout the course of the year.