Well, starting out, it’s easier to get set up if you’re a captive agent, writing for just one company. It’s almost impossible to get appointments from companies if you have no experience, as an independent agent.

So, I personally LOVE being an independent. You dont’ have to turn clients away, because there’s always another company who can write the business if one company doesn’t want to. That’s a major advantage, once you have some contracts in place.

One major disadvantage of being a captive, is if your company decides they aren’t going to write new business in your area for a year, or if they decide they’re going to pull out of your state. Then, to put it bluntly, you’re scr*wed.

Pros for a captive agent (a single company agent)

* Brand recogntion gives a new agent enhanced credibilty
* Agent only has to learn and understand one company’s products
* Companies often financialy assist agent with office rent and other expenses
* Captive companies often have formalized training programs for new agent

Cons for a captive agent -

* Captive company pays lower commission to it’s agents
* Products company offers may not be competitive
* Breadth of products offered may be limited
* Unexpected tightening in the company underwriting rules could result in less sales for the agent
* Company may lose it’s sales appetite for certain territories therefore choosing not to write or severly restrict new business submissions in those areas

Pros for an independent agent (an agent representing more than one company) -

* Independent agents receive higher commissions from their companies
* You are able to propose to your clients the best combination of price and coverage because you represent products from more than one company
* An agent has more opportunity to write insurance for a client because more products are available
* Because underwriting rules vary from company you have more flexibility in placing coverage for your client that might be denied by a captive company
* You are your own boss not beholding to a single company

Cons for an independent agent

* Difficult to receive new agency contracts with a company (read you don’t sell enough to interest the company
* Because you have several companies offerring numerous products it is harder to learn and understand the unique policy features
* I feel that independent agencies don’t have as many formalized training opportunities for new agents

Everyone covered the pros’s and cons of independent and captive sales positions very well. The only thing that might make a big difference to you and your family is the benefits. There could be a huge difference in cost and the amount of available coverage to you. The big guys have a lot of perks that some of the smaller agencies might not have or may be much more expensive like medical, dental, IRA, 401k, employee retirement fund, tuition reimbursement , short & long term disability, paid time off or vacation time corp. discount on hotels, car rental, gym membership etc….etc..The big companies also train you and pay/maintain your License and your credits too. I work as a captive agent so I don’t have very flexible work schedule because everything is set hours, but I have 27 days off full bennies like the ones I mentioned before but I don’t get residuals of the policies I have sold in the past and I get paid on a per policy basis once I have met my monthly goal and the $ per policy increases the more I sell but it’s not based on $ percentage of the policy only on the total number sold. On the other side I have a friend who makes more cash than I do as an independent but his medical and prescription plan is only ok. His works goes home with him and is always getting calls @ home on nights and weekends. 401k with barely any employee matching. Has 2 weeks vac but does have flex schedule if needs to take care of things during the work day. He gets his commission faster than me but he gets the money taken back if they cancel or get dropped. I get paid monthly and that’s after the policy sticks for 90 days. Yep that’s right…..I didn’t get paid commission for the first 90 days! I deal with his customers after the sale. I only sell and don’t have any dealings with the insured after the policy is issued. As you can see there are quite a few things to consider and I only covered 50% so I wish you the best of luck!!