Updated: November 6, 2023 | Originally Posted: October 8, 2019
Table of Contents:
Knowing What To Ask Is The Key To Finding The Best Group Health Insurance Agent For Your Company
What You’ll Learn in This Post
Ask These Questions Before Hiring a Group Health Insurance Agent
Are You an Independent Group Health Insurance Agent?
Can You Provide Me With References?
Are You Licensed and Registered as an Agent in Colorado?
What Can You Tell Me About the Types of Coverage My Employees Need?
Why Are You Recommending This Plan?
What Kind of Support Can I Expect From a Group Health Insurance Agent?
Reputation and Experience Matter When Hiring a Group Health Insurance Broker
Knowing What To Ask Is The Key To Finding The Best Group Health Insurance Agent For Your Company
Asking thoughtful, probing questions before hiring a group health insurance agent can save you, your business, and your employees a lot of hassles. When you hire an agent to help you find and enroll in coverage for your workforce, you are putting the health of your employees – and the health of your company’s bottom line – in their hands. Deciding who you entrust this responsibility to is not a decision you should take lightly.
You should think about hiring a group health insurance agent the way you would think about hiring a critical employee. You wouldn’t just pick the first person you meet with, and you wouldn’t offer them a job based just on what you read about them online.
You would interview multiple candidates, and during those interviews, you would ask each of them questions about their experience, knowledge, and approach. You would ask them what makes them the best person for the role and request references who could speak about their qualifications and character.
Only then, based on the candidate’s answers and the strength of their references, could you make an informed and confident decision about who to hire for the position.
What You’ll Learn in This Post:
- Hiring a group health insurance agent is like hiring someone for a critical position at your company. Treat your meetings with potential agents as you would a job interview, which includes asking questions about their experience, capabilities, and qualifications.
- You want to hear what the agent says about themselves and what others say about them. Ask for references, look at client reviews, and check the agent’s license status and disciplinary history.
- Ask the agent how they will help you pick the best plan for your company, why they recommend a specific plan, and how they will serve you in the years ahead.
Ask These Questions Before Hiring a Group Health Insurance Agent
As you begin the interviewing process, consider asking these seven questions before hiring a group health insurance agent in Colorado:
Are You An Independent Group Health Insurance Agent?
When looking for a Colorado group health insurance agent, make sure you find one who is independent. That means that they work with multiple carriers and can offer a variety of plans instead of just working for one health insurance company. Otherwise, you will have limited choices, and the ones you do have may not meet your needs.
Being an independent agent also means that they can provide objective analysis and guidance on what plan or carrier is best for your business, employees and budget, not what is best for them.
Additionally, you will not need to pay any fee to an independent health insurance agent, so there is zero downside to taking advantage of all that an independent agent can provide you and your company.
Can You Provide Me with References?
Every agent will toot their own horn, but what customers, colleagues and carriers say about their experiences is infinitely more reliable. In addition to reading online client reviews from unbiased sources like Google, ask the agent whether you can speak with other clients who have worked with them in the past.
Ideally, you want to talk with a reference from a business similar to yours, either in size or industry. This will help you determine the broker’s reputation within the industry and how well-suited they are to serve a company like yours.
Are You Licensed and Registered As An Agent in Colorado?
The state of Colorado knows how important hiring a group health insurance agent is for businesses and workers. That is why not just anyone can promote themselves as a group health insurance agent.
All Colorado group health insurance agents must be licensed and registered with the state. In order to obtain a license, an agent must prove that they have the knowledge, education, training, and judgment to assist clients with group health insurance coverage, including hours upon hours of required professional education every year.
You can verify the status of an agent’s license at the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agency’s Division of Insurance website.
Has a Client Ever Sued You?
This is an important question to ask before hiring a group health insurance agent because multiple lawsuits filed by consumers against an agent may be big red flags. These lawsuits indicate that several clients believe that the agent misled them, was incompetent, or otherwise failed to do the job they were hired to do.
If you don’t think the agent is giving you an honest answer to this question, you will need to research the truth of their statement online. Unfortunately, no central clearinghouse exists with this type of information.
However, you can find out if the agent has faced disciplinary action by the Division of Insurance here.
What Can You Tell Me About the Types of Coverage My Employees Need?
Every business has different requirements and priorities regarding group health insurance features and premiums. You should feel comfortable that the agent you’re considering working with (1) understands the features that matter to you and your employees and (2) explains them in a way that helps you select the best overall health insurance policy.
Related: What Should You Consider When Selecting a Group Health Insurance Plan?
Why Are You Recommending This Plan?
If the agent recommends a health insurance plan for your company, ask them why they chose that particular plan. Your potential health insurance agent should be able to clearly explain the basis of their recommendation. You can ask such questions as:
- Do you think a PPO will serve my company and employees better than an HMO? If so, why?
- If you recommend that we consider a Health Savings Account (HSA) or Flexible Savings Account (FSA) as part of our coverage, how would this help my business and workforce?
- What potential tax benefits are associated with the group health insurance plan you’ve recommended?
If the agent can’t defend their decision and give concrete reasons why the health plan is right for your company and employees, consider hiring a group health insurance agent who will.
What Kind of Support Can I Expect From a Group Health Insurance Agent?
Your employees’ health is a top priority for your company, and the support you receive from your health insurance agent should reflect that.
Whether that means offering written material in more than one language, the ability to reach someone during off-hours, or addressing any concern or question you may have, you should feel confident that you are hiring a group health insurance agent who will be there for you when you need them.
The last thing you want is to work with an agent that takes a one-size-fits-all approach and doesn’t take any of your company’s unique factors into consideration when providing options.
Reputation and Experience Matter When Hiring a Group Health Insurance Agent
Hiring a Colorado group health insurance agent to care for your employee’s insurance needs is one of the wisest business decisions you can make. The questions we have considered in this article can help you find the best agent for your employees and your budget.
Preferred Insurance has a reputation for excellence and experience that hundreds of Colorado businesses rely on each year. We look forward to answering these questions for you and showing you why we are Colorado’s preferred group health insurance broker. Contact our office today to get started.
