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- Directly liscensed with dozens of insurance companies.
- Access to 100's of companies on the wholesale market.
Insurance FAQ
A bit of information about the insurance industry.
There are approximately 2,500 insurance companies in the USA that sell Property and Casualty insurance. Not all of those companies choose to be licensed in every state. In Oregon, for example, there are roughly 60 companies licensed to sell personal auto insurance and another 40 that sell homeowner’s insurance. You can find out information on these companies by contacting the Oregon Insurance Division at www.insurance.oregon.gov and by contacting A. M. Best Corporation at www.ambest.com.
The insurance industry is divided into two main categories: Retail and Wholesale. Insurance policies offered by retail companies are sold by retail agents, which can be either direct writers or independents. Direct writers usually only represent a single company, whereas independents have the flexibility of offering insurance from several companies. On the retail side, both direct writers and independents sign contracts with the companies they represent. The Agency Contracts give the agent limited authority to perform certain functions for the insurance company. A retail agent’s customers are the general public.
On the wholesale side, insurance companies may choose to license only one or two agents in a state. Those agents must carry a special license called a ‘Surplus Lines License.’ Generally, companies that choose to go wholesale are those companies that are willing to insure riskier exposures and ventures. A wholesale agent’s customers are the retail agents. The wholesale agent has the Agency contract with the insurance company. Therefore, the retail agent becomes a broker to the wholesaler. The general public does not have direct access to wholesalers and must go through a retail agent.
American Insurance Agency, LLC is a retail, independent insurance agency. We are directly licensed with and can offer personal, commercial, life and health insurance with about three dozen insurance companies. However, we have access through the wholesale market to hundreds of insurance companies.
