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The differences between insurance underwriters, sales and licensed insurance agents can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a licensed insurance agent has an average salary of $54,118, which is higher than the $40,226 average annual salary of an insurance underwriter, sales.
The top three skills for an insurance underwriter, sales include lead generation, financial services and customer service. The most important skills for a licensed insurance agent are excellent time management, work ethic, and strong customer service.
| Insurance Underwriter, Sales | Licensed Insurance Agent | |
| Yearly salary | $40,226 | $54,118 |
| Hourly rate | $19.34 | $26.02 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 50,699 | 78,016 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 55% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
A sales insurance underwriter evaluates new or renewal applications in turn for insurance coverage for companies and individuals. Insurance underwriters analyze insurance proposal risks and identify policy terms. They perform calculations on premiums based on statistical, background, and actuarial information. Several insurance businesses and companies operate graduate schemes that offer to underwrite. Among the necessary skills for this job include communication, decision making, and detail orientation.
A licensed insurance agent is primarily responsible for finding and utilizing opportunities to secure insurance sales. Moreover, a licensed insurance agent must reach out to potential clients, discuss and negotiate terms, respond to inquiries, and perform various assessments to determine their ability to uphold financial obligations. Besides building a client base, they also need to handle current policies, process renewals, monitor claims, maintain an accurate record of transactions, prepare progress reports and strategies, and distribute policy proceeds according to the company rules and regulations.
Insurance underwriters, sales and licensed insurance agents have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Insurance Underwriter, Sales | Licensed Insurance Agent | |
| Average salary | $40,226 | $54,118 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $56,000 | Between $32,000 And $88,000 |
| Highest paying City | Los Angeles, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Wisconsin | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | New York Life Insurance | Torchmark |
| Best paying industry | Insurance | Finance |
There are a few differences between an insurance underwriter, sales and a licensed insurance agent in terms of educational background:
| Insurance Underwriter, Sales | Licensed Insurance Agent | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 55% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between insurance underwriters, sales' and licensed insurance agents' demographics:
| Insurance Underwriter, Sales | Licensed Insurance Agent | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 61.0% Female, 39.0% | Male, 39.0% Female, 61.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 16.0% Asian, 4.9% White, 66.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.7% Asian, 4.9% White, 66.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |