Ethics: An Introduction

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Professionalism

Ethical Professional Characteristics

There are four characteristics that are necessary to be a professional. First, a professional is engaged in a vocation that is both useful and noble enough to inspire love and enthusiasm on the part of the practitioner. Second, the vocation requires an expert's knowledge in its practice. Third, in applying the knowledge, the practitioner should abandon the strictly selfish commercial view and ever keep in mind the advantage of the client. Fourth, and finally, the professional should possess a spirit of loyalty to fellow practitioners, of helpfulness to the common cause they all profess, and should not allow any unprofessional acts to bring shame upon the entire profession.

The concept of "Professionalism", as defined in the fields of law and medicine, has always required that the interest of the client come first. The best insurance agents have long believed and practiced this, asking, "which product will serve the client's interest best?" Insurance buyers today are more sophisticated than they once were. They are better educated and have been trained to function in an increasingly complex and competitive business environment.

Today's insurance buyers are increasingly exposed to volumes of investment information on numerous television programs and in a number of magazines. They expect to be given a great deal of information and they expect to be spoken to in sophisticated terms. They understand rates of return, loads, expense charges, income taxes, tax-deferred qualified plans, limited partnerships and mutual funds. Agents today have to be able to speak with understanding about such things and to present life insurance favorably in a highly competitive context. Today's insurance buyer can tell when the insurance agent is unsure, when he or she seems to exaggerate the benefits of a policy, or seems to obscure the difference between a policy's guarantees and its non-guaranteed overall potential performance. The insurance buyer today has the same skepticism that buyers in other areas have always had and, thus, need more information than ever to overcome that skepticism to enter into a successful professional relationship.

It is contingent upon the agent to do everything in his or her power to become the most well trained, well educated, and professional salesperson possible. The agent today is in competition with stockbrokers, bankers, and insurance policies sold on television and the Internet. The agent who falls behind the industry in terms of education and training is truly risking his or her career. In today's environment, clients want to know that their agent is continuing to learn, like their doctor and lawyer.

It is not only a matter of practicality in maintaining one's clientele; it is also a matter of professional ethics for agents to remain up to date in their field. This is the primary reason the state insurance commissioners have instituted continuing education requirements in every state in the union in order for an agent to remain licensed.

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Not only are policy forms, clauses, rules and court decisions constantly changing, but forms vary from company to company and state to state. This material is intended as a general guideline and might not apply to a specific situation. The authors, LunchTimeCE, Inc., CEfreedom, and InsuranceEthics101.com, and any organization for whom this course is administered will have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage alleged to be caused directly or indirectly as a result of information contained in this course.