The standard of care for insurance agents
Insurance agents must meet a professional standard of care in their dealings with customers. At a minimum, an agent must procure the coverage a client requests, or tell the client that it cannot be obtained. When an agent assumes the duty to advise, the agent may also face claims for:
- Failing to recommend needed or required coverage
- Failing to explain coverage limitations and offer solutions
- Failing to periodically review and update coverage as conditions change
- Failing to conduct proper due diligence on co-brokers
- Failing to promptly forward premiums to the insurance company
- Failing to investigate an insurer’s financial condition before placing or renewing coverage
- Failing to give proper notice of cancellations or non-renewals
- Issuing inaccurate certificates of insurance
Buyer and seller, or trusted advisor?
Not every agent is required to act as your advisor. If the relationship is simply buyer and seller, the agent’s basic duty is to procure the coverage you requested. Once that duty is met, the agent is not responsible for gaps in coverage you did not ask for.
But if your agent made promises or took on additional services, such as periodic coverage reviews, failing to deliver on them can expose the agent to a claim when a loss turns out to be underinsured or uncovered. Evaluating these claims takes someone who knows how agencies actually operate.
Why this experience matters
Mr. Sapourn spent 23 years as an agency principal and knows of no errors and omissions claim filed against his agency in that time. He has been qualified as an expert witness on the insurance agent standard of care in federal and state courts. If an agent let you down, he brings that industry knowledge to your case as your attorney.