How to Become an Insurance Broker in Melbourne

Insurance Continuing EducationInsurance brokers are trained and certified financial advisers. These professional individuals provide their clients with expert advice on quality insurance plans that are ideal for what customers require. A broker also has the skills to help businesses identify which assets should be insured.

Going into the insurance broker industry is an excellent career choice because it’s not overly saturated and the job pays well. There are many insurance brokers in Melbourne, so if you’d like to see how they operate why not visit an office in the city? This may help you make a concerted career choice.

If you feel that becoming an insurance broker is for you, keep reading to find out how you can get started.

Study to Achieve a Certificate III

In order for you to become an insurance broker in Australia you’ll need to study and achieve a Certificate III with any accredited college or any education establishment. There are various colleges, and online courses you can study through to gain your Certificate III.

It’s advised that you do your research on the college you want to study through, to ensure that they adhere to the Australian Securities and Investment Commissions Guide. The course you undertake to gain your certificate will give you the fundamentals in the insurance industry.

You’ll also gain knowledge of the legal and financial industries & the ethics of the insurance trade.

You’ll Need your Diploma

After you’ve achieved your Certificate III and you’ve got basic knowledge of the insurance industry you’ll need to acquire a diploma. The Diploma of Insurance Broking is a qualification that gives you an extensive overview of the business. You’ll learn more about the following:

  • Learning about risk
  • The needs of different types of needs for various scenarios
  • Client relationships
  • How to handle conflict

Your Diploma of Insurance Broking will have to be achieved in order for you to gain an Australian Financial Service Licence. It will also give you the skills and know-how to reach entry level positions with a licensed insurance broker Melbourne based company.

Ways to Obtain Experience

Your Certificate III and diploma is to teach you about the industry but how do you put your knowledge to practice? The only way for insurance broker companies to take you seriously is if you obtain as much experience in the industry as possible.

Gaining experience will also help you further your chances of receiving your Australian Financial Service Licence. However, you’ll be required to obtain your experience with an insurance broker establishment that’s licensed.

You may have to work as an intern for a short period of time. The work that you do must be recorded for the Australian licensing department to have proof of your experience and your knowledge of the business.

A Licence in the Industry

Finally, it’s time to achieve your Australian Financial Service License which will assist you in becoming a professional insurance broker. However the Australian Securities and Investments Commission may have extensive requirements for your application.

The requirements will depend on the type of insurance broker you’d like to become. There are various sub-divisions of insurance broking namely the following:

  • Automobile insurance
  • Medical insurance
  • Business insurance
  • Financial insurance
  • Insurance for the Logistics industry
  • Engineering coverage

Ensure you research the requirements that are relevant for the division you want to branch into before applying for your license because it will speed up the process.

Another aspect you may want to consider is signing up for a membership with any insurance broker association. These associations provide extensive advantages and connections within the industry that may be useful to you when you’re starting out.

Insurance Broker’s Job Description

In the beginning of this guide we gave you a short explanation of the function of an insurance broker. However there’s so much more to the profession. Insurance brokers act on behalf of individuals or businesses as mediators to communicate with insurance companies.

Fundamentally an insurance broker will give an overview of various insurance options that will assist their clients based on what they require. These requirements could be:

  • Lower interest rates
  • Various types of coverage on liability assets
  • Benefits of the insurance coverage
  • Overview of premium costs
  • What’s included and excluded from the package

Insurance brokers use their contacts to arrange and customise insurance packages from various companies to provide quality coverage for their clients.

Final Thoughts

For you to be a successful insurance broker you must be a passionate and dedicated individual with excellent work ethic. You must be able to work with numbers and have top-notch research skills.

Decisiveness and brilliant negotiation abilities are two skills you must possess in order to become a trusted insurance broker. So are you up for the challenge? Become part of a team that strives to assist their clients in finding excellent insurance coverage.

The industry would be lucky to gain an insurance broker like you!

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