Five questions to ask yourself when choosing an online insurance continuing education provider

Making sure you comply with your state’s insurance licensing regulations is one of the most important issues you have to deal with as an insurance professional. Your career depends on it. Getting the required continuing insurance education (or “CE”) is a big part of that, and thanks to today’s technology, you have more CE insurance options than ever before.

A recent study by Agent Media indicated that 67 percent of respondents now obtain at least some of their CE insurance credits online. It really is the most efficient option, saving the travel costs and time away from the office associated with classroom training. Due to its growing popularity, there are many web-based companies now offering continuing insurance education online. How do you narrow down all of these options to find the best CE insurance provider for you?

Before you sign up for your next course, consider these questions:

Does the provider offer high-quality and convincing teaching material?

Online insurance CE courses should take advantage of the multimedia capabilities (audio, video, animation) of the web to maximize the effectiveness of the learning experience. Courses must be written by recognized industry experts, must follow the required format, and must be approved in all 50 states. Request a free sample course to ensure the provider meets these requirements. Also, check the provider’s course catalog to make sure they offer a wide enough variety of courses so you can get all the training you need from one source.

Does the provider track and report the results of the training for you and your employees?

In order for you to remain compliant, the results of your insurance continuing education courses need to get into the right hands in a timely manner. Find a CE insurance provider that will take care of that for you with no additional paperwork on your part. The general idea of ​​earning required credits online is to make the process faster and more efficient, so make sure your provider automatically tracks all of your courses, tells you which courses you still need to take, and reports your results to the state. within two to three business days (as permitted by your state licensing board). You should also immediately receive a Certificate of Completion when you pass a course, so you have a test on hand when needed. These services should be available to you at no additional charge.

Are the courses flexible enough to fit your schedule?

Online learning has made it possible to take your insurance CE courses anywhere and anytime you have an internet connection, but sometimes it’s still hard to find the time to sit down and complete a course in one sitting. Find an online insurance CE provider that allows you to save your sessions and pick up where you left off, so you can really work at your own pace.

Can courses be retaken without additional charges?

Once you’ve paid for a course, you should be able to review it as many times as you like without being charged again. You must also be allowed to retake the exams as often as you need to pass the course and earn credit.

If you are going to be away from your computer, can you take the course material with you?

Just because you’re taking a web-based course, you don’t need to be tethered to the computer all the time. Find a provider that allows you to print pages of course material for later review. Also, your provider should allow you to download the audio for multimedia courses. These audio downloads can be saved as a podcast to your MP3 player for added flexibility. You can review information while traveling, exercising, doing housework, anywhere you can use your iPod.

The goal of continuing insurance education is to make sure you stay up to date on the latest developments in insurance services and regulations. When you receive the best training possible, both you and your customers will reap the rewards. Finding a high-quality, accredited online continuing education partner is the first step in maximizing the benefit to your business, and it’s well worth the effort to do your homework.