This post is part of the series organized by the Risk and Insurance Education Alliance.
In an industry where trust is all, Gallup’s 2023 honesty and morals survey (Brennan & Jones, 2024) found that only 12 % of Americans have termed the honesty and moral standards of insurance sellers “high” or “very high.” In comparison, nurses rank the highest classification with 78 % honesty and moral standard rating, and car sales are close to the bottom (yes, just close) with 8 % rating.
As a trusted adviser to the businesses and people we serve, we should stop. If morality and integrity are the main place of which we are as an industry, why do the people see us so different? The difference between how we look at our standards and how the clients realize them are, because morality is continuing education. It’s not about checking a box. It is about to build confidence, reinforce professionalism, and show that we practice with the promises we make as an industry we practice.
In professional settings, ethics refers to the principles and standards that are beyond compliance with the laws, which focuses on justice, honesty, integrity and responsibility for clients, colleagues and the public. The insurance professionals are easy to read, and agree that those values are an important part of our daily business activities, our client’s talks, and our philosophy on new products. In fact, we are an industry that is based on promises: promise of payment, promise to show, when individuals and companies need the most for us.
In our profession, communication on ethics is clear everywhere, how we sell coverage and promote our business that explanation of policies, handling brown areas, and helping clients when we need the most. That is why morality is not just about compliance. It is a reminder that what we interpret as professionals and have the opportunity to strengthen the public’s trust in our work.
Current Earth’s renovation: Ethics CE all over the United States
Each state needs licensed insurance professionals to complete the ongoing education, and almost all add a dedicated requirement for all morality. In most states, the quality is three hours of morality every two years, which takes place in a 24 -hour wider period.
California law requires three hours of ethics, including one hour of fraud in each license period. Texas orders a three -hour morality or consumer protection. Even the states, which once resisted, have included the clear requirements of ethics, such as a penselvenia, in which the new three -hour new rules of Pennsylvania have been enforced in 2024.
While three hours are normal, it has variations. New York needs only an hour, though within a 15 -year -old CE framework. Despite these differences, the direction is permanent: ethics are non -negotiated.
For insurance professionals, this means, regardless of, as far as they are licensed, ethics is an integral part of the ongoing renewal process. And regulators enforce it seriously. States usually impose fines for every lost credit, and if the ethics are not met, the licenses cannot be suspended or renewed. “Ethics is not additional,” says Kim Screen, director of education at the Risk and Insurance Education Alliance: now it is central to maintaining a license. “
How did we get here: a short history of morality
The ongoing education for licensed insurance professionals was designed to strengthen technical skills and industry knowledge. The CE ensures that licensed professionals remain current, to get both clients, individuals and businesses, advice and services to reflect the latest mandates, policies and other needs. Without continuing his education, insurance buyers may not be convinced that the advice they are receiving is based on the current knowledge, and this may pose a risk through programs that provide less than proper coverage.
During the 1980s and 1990s, the sale of life fraud insurance, which resulted in large -scale resettlement against major insurers. Since consumer concerns and industry scams have attracted attention, regulators found that keeping licensed insurance professionals technically refreshed is just part of this solution. The states gradually began to incorporate morality into the CE needs.
In 1999, the approval of the Gram Leach Bulley Act, which primarily focused on the privacy and disclosure of undemocratic personal financial information, encouraged the adoption of a more uniform licensing system. The NAIC responded with the Producer Licensing Model Act (Model #218). Although it did not set the need for a national CE, states need to recognize each other’s CE standards. In practice, it created pressure for alignment and guided most states to adopt similar needs, including ethics CE to maintain bilateral relations.
In the early 2000s, scandals reinforced this point. In 2004, a major issue of bidding in one of the biggest insurance brokers exposes interest and hidden commissioning conflicts. Regulators called it “ignoring morality and law” (La Times, 2004) and used more justification to double the morality of morality.
By the end of the 2000s, the Ethics CE was almost universal. Further recent changes, such as the adoption of Pennsylvania in 2024 have closed the rest of the space. Today, Ethics CE is not just a regulatory check box. It is a product of decades of reform that aims to restore confidence in insurance.
Why ethics training makes a difference: research
Skiptics sometimes ask whether morality can really change or affect it. Research shows that this happens.
Researchers from MIT and Notary Dam (Eagn, Matos, Cero, 2019) studied the records of 1.2 million US financial advisers in a 10 -year period. He found that those who examined the licensing with strong ethics are later 25 % less likely to be mismanagement than those who have given less emphasis on morality. In addition, this effect was the most prominent among the early career professionals, which suggests that ethics training on key points in the career can create long -term practices.
Other studies also support the same result. According to Captain’s 2015 The effectiveness of ethics programs (Captain, 2015), cOuts of ethical programs, including the ongoing training report, including a scarfers of corruption, as well as when they observe the problems, also include strong willingness to speak to employees. In other words, training not only reduces bad functions, it strengthens the cultures of accountability.
Although no study or research project has created direct connection between ethics education and public affairs about an industry, it would be difficult to argue that continuous emphasis on ethics education does not have any meaningful effect on public opinion.
In the law enforcement agencies (Basham, 2020), the terms of public grievances and mismanagement are less in the departments needed by the college level ethics coursework. In Madison (Caberra Et El, 2022) and Accounting (CPE, 2023), ethics training is related to better decision -making, reducing discipline issues and increasing public confidence. The lessons apply to the professions: structural, repeated ethics education reduces mismanagement and increases reputation.
For insurance professionals, the implications are clear. Ethics provides a repeated opportunity to refresh the Christian decision, revise the gray areas and to strengthen the client’s first mentality. It keeps professionalism in front and center.
Alliance’s point of view: to complying with compliance
In the Risk and Insurance Education Alliance, we believe that ethics CE is not just about meeting the need for two annual licenses. It is about to enhance the quality of professionalism throughout the industry. As the head of our Faculty and Academic Development, Jay Williams emphasizes, “Ethics training is a place where licensed insurance professionals withdraw from technical details and consider what clients mean to serve with responsibility.” Ethics courses, such as all the programs offered by alliance, are prepared and taught with practical mindset using real -life conditions and attracting our faculty experiences.
The curriculum of our ethics not only meets the needs of the state’s ongoing education, but also emphasizes our commitment to the insurance professional and overall industry. Self -powered format and directly presented in both webinar, courses use case studies that reflect the real world’s dilemma, with discussions that challenge professionals to think critically, and connect moral principles to everyday practice. For us, ethics CE is a way to strengthen both individual agents and the industry’s reputation as a whole.
Conclusion
Ethics ongoing education is now a national standard, but its value is much higher than compliance. This is one of the most important tools to strengthen public trust in insurance. It reduces mismanagement, improves decision, and reinforces the professional identity of agents and producers.
Since the industry is manufactured with new technologies, new products and new expectations, ethics will become a thread that connects technical skills with professional responsibility. In alliance, we are determined to lead this place, providing education that prepares insurance professionals not only to keep their licenses but also to maintain our business confidence.
About Risk & Insurance Education Alliance
The Risk and Insurance Education Alliance offers practical ethics, which directly includes a series of one -hour webiners and a three -hour -long course that meets the needs of the state CE morality. Create your own independent unity profile and see the full course schedule here.
References
Brennan, M, and Jones, JM (2024, January 22) Rating Ethics of all professions almost all in the United States Gallup News Available:
National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). Producer Licensing Model Act (PLMA), Model #218. It was first adopted in 2000. Available:
Hamilton, W and Christoph, KM (2004, October 15) Spitzer sued Marsh and McLean. Available on Los Angeles Times:
Eagan, M, Metoos, G, and Sero, A. (2019). Market for financial advisor mismanagement. Journal of political economyFor, for, for,. 127 (1), 233-295. University of Chicago Press.
Captain, m. (2015) The effectiveness of ethics programs: the role of scope, composition and configuration. Journal of Business Ethics, 132, 415-431 (2015).
Basham, Mr. (2020, March 24) Education offers the best solution to the police mismanagement. Police Chief Magazine. International Association of Chief of Police
Caber, Off, Ars Boys, S, Lopez, MJ, Raera-Lopez, E, and Rodrig, J. (2022) Ethics Education for Medical Students: A systematic review. Journal of medical ethics. National Center for Biotechnology Information.
CPE online. (2023) The basics of ethics in modern accounting: a comprehensive overview. CPE online.
