The Pennsylvania Insurance Department (PID) is touting its success in growing the insurance agent workforce in the state.
Over the last three years, the state has made entry for new insurance agents into the insurance industry faster, while also encouraging a new generation of individuals to consider a career in insurance, PID says.
In 2023, the state eliminated various licensing fees and reduced agent application review times from 20 days to under eight days. PID claims that since this streamlining of credentialing for those seeking a career in insurance, 33,000 qualified licensees have joined the workforce.
The following year, PID worked with the General Assembly on bipartisan legislation (Act 142 of 2024) to remove pre-licensing education requirements for first-time insurance agent applicants. PID says this also removed financial barriers for future agents.
“PID remains committed to encouraging careers in insurance and smoothing entry points into the insurance workforce,” said Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Michael Humphreys. “Slashing application wait-times and removing licensing fees have allowed the industry to gain thousands of trusted insurance agents that are ready and willing to assist Pennsylvanians with their insurance needs.”
Before the process changes began in 2023, there were about 365,000 insurance producers in the state. At the end of 2023, an additional 8,000 licensees joined the industry, bringing the state-wide total to 373,000 licensed agents. Since then, 25,000 additional licenses were issued – for a total of about 398,000 licensed insurance professionals.
PID’s also says its NextGen Insurance Academy invests in the future workforce by partnering with several Pennsylvania colleges and universities to provide a hands-on learning program that introduces college students to potential careers in insurance. In the last three years, PID has connected with hundreds of students majoring in actuarial science, risk management and criminal justice.
A Kentucky insurance agency owner has been charged with diverting premiums from a church client, and the Kentucky Department of Insurance is investigating other clients.
Multiple news sites reported that Glen “David” Ramey, 59, an agent and owner of David Ramey Insurance in Murray, Kentucky, was charged with defrauding a local church of at least $10,000. Ramey allegedly accepted premium payments from the church but failed to secure property and liability insurance policies, the Murray Sentinel and other news outlets reported.
“My attorney has advised me not to comment,” Ramey told Insurance Journal Tuesday morning when he was reached by phone.
Officials with the Yahweh Baptist Church reported their suspicions to the Graves County Sheriff March 16, after receiving a cancellation notice from the insurance carrier, the Sentinel reported. Investigators said the church asked Ramsey to produce a run-loss report, which showed gaps in coverage in recent years, despite the church having never missed a premium payment, WPSD Local 6 News reported.