Is Property-Casualty Insurers a Good Career Path?

Property-casualty insurers are an important industry that protects people and businesses from big financial losses caused by natural disasters, accidents, and lawsuits for negligence. As a result, it can be an interesting and rewarding career path for people who want a stable job and like to solve problems. Property-casualty insurers are responsible for evaluating risks, pricing policies, and settling claims. A lot of the time, they are also in charge of marketing, underwriting, managing risks, and working with other departments. But before you consider this career option, it’s important to understand what it entails and if it’s the right fit for you. In this blog post, I’ll talk about the important parts of a career in property and casualty insurance so you can decide if it’s a good fit for you.

What is property-casualty insurance?

Personal property coverage can be broken down into two main categories, business interruption and loss of use. Business interruptions occur when a property loss or damage results in an interruption of business for a specified time, such as when a building is damaged or destroyed by fire and must be rebuilt. Business interruption is also known as business income insurance. Loss of use happens when something is lost or damaged and the property can no longer be used for what it was made for. For example, if a car is destroyed by fire, it can no longer be used as a car and must be replaced. Loss of use is also known as replacement cost insurance. It can cover the loss of value of other personal property that can’t be used because it was stolen or damaged beyond repair and can’t be fixed.

Property-casualty insurance can also be broken down into terms. The co-exists of both bodily injury and property damage, which cover injuries and losses that relate to the physical injury of a person or property. Collision insurance covers property damage caused by another vehicle. Fire and theft can happen even if you have property and casualty coverage, so you may need separate policies.

What is the career outlook for property-casualty insurance?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) says that property and casualty insurance jobs will grow by 11% by 2026, which is much faster than the average for all jobs. This growth is expected to come from an increase in hiring new claims adjusters, field adjusters, loss control managers, and claims managers. There will also likely be more job openings than people looking for work.

Certain positions are expected to see greater growth than others. Insurance claim adjusting is projected to grow 31% faster than average. Loss control management is expected to grow by 19%, and insurance claims management is expected to grow by 12%. The growing complexity of insurance policies, changes in rules, and growth in related fields like business management, accounting, finance, and information technology will drive demand.

There is a good amount of variety in the industry, which gives people options for jobs and chances to move up. For example, you can progress from an insurance claims adjuster to the manager of a field investigations department, or vice-versa. In addition, you can choose whether to work in an office setting or as an adjuster on the road. You can also choose between positions in small and large companies, as well as full-time and part-time positions.

Is Property-Casualty Insurers a Good Career Path?

Here are a few reasons why you should start your property-casualty insurance career:

• A property-casualty insurance career can be very rewarding. You can gain a lot of experience and knowledge about the industry that can help you throughout your career.

• A property-casualty insurance career is one of the most stable careers in today’s job market. The industry has absolutely no doubt that the job market will stay the same in this decade or this century, so it won’t be reasonable to expect that there will be any dramatic changes to the industry.

• An insurance career can help you grow your wealth. It is almost impossible to predict how much money you can make in this career, but it is possible to predict that if you are smart, hardworking, and have a good personality, then you will have the chance to earn more than your average wage.

Required Education and Training

While not required, a bachelor’s degree in business administration is generally preferred. In addition to a degree, most employers also look for applicants with relevant life, health, or property-casualty insurance experience. Internships, volunteer work, and career-related courses taken outside college can provide user experiences that make job seekers stand out from other applicants.

If you want to be an insurance agent or broker in New York, you must pass the Property-Casualty Insurance Exam. The exam has two parts: one is about the part of property-casualty licensing law that doesn’t have to do with health, and the other is about insurance law that has to do with health plans and health insurance contracts. The New York State Department of Financial Services administers it. It is offered twice annually, in June and December of each year.

The Property-Casualty Insurance Exam consists of 120 multiple-choice questions (21 for each section). The exam must be completed within 4 hours. Candidates have six years to pass the exam, which may be taken multiple times in one sitting or on different occasions. If you fail the exam, your scores will be valid for two years from the date of your first attempt; on your second attempt, you must achieve a passing score within one year of your first attempt, or the scores will expire and will not be usable again. The property-casualty licensing exam is generally not waived for military service or law school.

The Property-Casualty License Exam can be waived for military service. In this case, a GS-5 or higher classification is needed to be appointed and serve in the U.S. Armed Forces as a civilian aid to the soldier and provide direct support to the soldier, including but not limited to planning and coordinating mission goals, assigning and supervising general support functions, personnel administration, including financial management, and communication with subordinates.

Benefits of Working in Property-Casualty Insurance

Property-casualty insurance jobs provide career advancement opportunities and can offer decent compensation. In addition, many property-casualty insurance jobs can be done from home. It can greatly benefit working mothers and those with health concerns or disabilities. Pensions are also offered to many retired firefighters.

The BLS says that jobs for insurance adjusters and claims managers will grow by 11% from 2016 to 2026, a little faster than the average for all jobs. The number of job openings should be 27% higher than the number of people looking for work. Many employers prefer to hire people with experience in this field, so there can be a lot of competition for these jobs. However, due to insurance company mergers and acquisitions, there were a record number of job openings in 2016—150,000—and most were filled by people looking for new opportunities.

The average income for a property-casualty claims adjuster was approximately $68,000 in 2016. The median salary for claim examiners and adjusters was $50,000 and the bottom 10% earned less than $28,000.

Property-Casualty Insurance Fraud: A few companies can do this, but many insurance companies don’t need to because they write more insurance than is required by law. They are also required by law to have internal controls and auditing systems put in place so that no fraud occurs. Human error is notorious for causing small errors. Still, it is almost impossible to find large-scale frauds that happen regularly from inside or outside the company.

Ways to Get Started in Property-Casualty Insurance

If you are interested in having a career in property-casualty insurance, here are a few tips to get started:

1. Take courses in math, statistics, and economics. These courses are crucial for understanding numerical data and calculating premiums and claims. Courses that cover subjects such as accounting, finance, and business law will also give you a good foundation for a career in property-casualty insurance.

2. Obtain an insurance license or certification, if required by the state where you want to work. These can be obtained through a combination of education, experience and exams.

3. Take a class on how to write insurance policies and claims. An insurance claims adjuster or examiner needs to know how to place blame to succeed at their job. The ability to identify flaws and find solutions on a consistent basis is critical in the insurance industry.

4. Practice writing up policy forms for your future job as an adjuster or examiner. You will need to know how to manipulate information from a policy form into a list of problems with that policy that require further investigation by the company’s appraisers or examiners.

5. Volunteer in the insurance industry. Insurance companies often ask for volunteers to sign up for classes and generally focus on training those new to the industry. This can be a great way to get a feel for the industry and learn more about how insurance companies work before asking them to hire you. Many states require volunteer time while working toward licensure, so some employers are okay with having volunteers help them out during training periods. It is important to remember that volunteer time is not paid time, and there is no guarantee that if your employer asks you to become a volunteer, they will hire you.

Conclusion

Property casualty insurers are a great career path for those interested in working in the insurance industry. It provides a stable and lucrative career with many opportunities for growth and advancement. High salaries, flexible working hours, and job security are just a few of the advantages of this field. Anyone can become an expert in property-casualty insurance and have a prosperous and fulfilling career with the right training and experience.