FIRST,
THE NUMBERS:
The US Insurance Industry employed 2.3 million people in
1998.
There are 3366 property/casualty insurance companies in
the U.S.
There are over 350 job titles in the insurance industry.
Insurance is a growing field! US Insurance premiums were
$636.8 billion in 1998, 8% higher than in 1997.
Insurance is profitable!!
Rates of return over the last few years have been 9% -
11%.
Best Practices agencies average 13-20% pro-forma, pre-tax
profit.
Over the last 10 years, employment in the insurance
industry has averaged 1.8% of total US employment.
In Florida, the industry employs over 130,000 people,
about 50,000 in the agency business.
There are over 70,000 independent agencies (independently
owned businesses) in the US.
There are over 10,000 in Florida.
NOW, THE SOFT SELL:
The insurance industry is resistant to both recessions
and inflationary times. Insurance is a commodity that people have a
need for despite the economic trends.
Insurance touches every part of our lives.
Any interest you have can be found in insurance. Every
industry must have insurance coverage. So, if you have an interest in
golf, cars, gardening, or wildlife, etc., you can incorporate those
interests into your insurance career.
Insurance is a helping industry.
Without insurance, mortgages could not be made for
homeowners, businesses couldn't get loans, and victims of all types of
disaster would have no way to rebuild their homes, businesses, and
lives. With the unfortunate increase in natural disasters, the need for
insurance rises.
You can own your own business!
The majority of agency owners countrywide
are between the ages of 30 to 55.
If you are interested in a career in insurance, please
contact us!
(insert agency name here)
The Insurance Industry's Impact
On the Florida Economy
February 23, 2001
Insurance a Major Force in the Florida Economy
The insurance industry is a major
force in the Florida economy, contributing billions of dollars as an
employer, taxpayer and responsible corporate citizen, and its
significance to the state continues to grow. The nearly 2,000 admitted
insurance carriers operating in the state in 2000 provided jobs for an
estimated 133,003 Floridians, according to a national survey, The
Insurance Industry: A Key Player in the U.S. Economy (seventh edition),
published by the Alliance of American Insurers. This included 29,063
jobs in property & casualty, 51,993 in life and health and 51,947 in
agents, brokers and service categories.
Florida Ranks Sixth in Insurance
Employment
Florida ranked sixth in the country
in insurance community employment in 2000, behind California, with
229,027 jobs; New York, with 203,274 jobs; Texas, 153,834; Illinois,
146,390; and Pennsylvania, 143,953. Total insurance employment in
Florida has increased from 115,888 reflected in the last Alliance survey
in 1994 and from 104,960 in 1992. Florida ranked fifth in the nation in
insurance employment in the 1997 survey. It has since switched places
with Pennsylvania.
The estimated direct payroll for
Florida from insurance in 2000 was about $5 billion, sixth highest among
the states and up from $4.2 billion in 1997 when Florida's national
ranking in this category was sixth and up from $3.5 billion in 1994. The
Alliance provided this breakdown of insurance direct payroll in Florida
in 2000: $1.291 billion in property and casualty; $1.921 billion in life
and health; and $1.834 billion in agents, brokers and services.
The estimated total number of
insurance company employees in the United States in 2000 was 2,464,422,
with direct payroll for those employees estimated at $100.1 billion.
The Alliance survey did not include
a county-by-county breakdown on insurance employment in Florida.
However, employment centers include Dade County, home of a host of
domestic insurance companies and domestic and foreign reinsurance
operations; Jacksonville-Duval County, a center for life and health
insurance activities for the last several decades; and Orlando and
Tampa-St. Petersburg where several carriers have large regional offices.
Insurance Companies as Consumers
Insurance companies purchase goods
such as computer equipment, office furniture and office supplies. In
addition, insurers often use the services of outside professionals such
as investment advisors, accountants, computer programmers, lawyers and
medical professionals. These purchases by insurers create employment in
other industries. The insurance community indirectly employed an
estimated 126,458 persons in Florida during 1997, fifth highest in
the country.
Insurers as Taxpayers
Insurers paid an estimated $400
million in premium taxes into Florida coffers in the 1998-99 fiscal
year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That is up from $312 million
in 1993. Florida insurance premium tax collections consistently rank
among the top ten in the country and sometimes among the top five.
Companies pay other hundreds of millions of dollars in other taxes as
well, including corporate income taxes and sales taxes on purchased
goods and services.
GNP Impact
The Florida insurance community
contributed 2.6 percent of the gross state product in 1998, the
latest figures available, placing the state with the 9th highest ranking
nationally. The property and casualty industry's average gross domestic
product nationally was 2.2 percent for 1994. The Florida insurance
community contributed 1.9 percent of the gross state product in 1990,
according to the last Alliance survey in this area.
For additional information contact:
Thomas Ressler, Alliance of American Insurers, (630-724-2154)
REFERENCES: FINDING THE PERFECT EMPLOYEE
The III Fact Book,
Insurance Information Institute, 2000,
www.iiaa.org
2000 Best Practices Update,
IIAA, www.iiaa.org
What It Costs,
2001 Edition, The Rough Notes Company
"FAIA Member Survey" with Kerr &
Downes Research, 2000
Florida Statistical Abstract,
34th Edition, BEBR, University of Florida, 2000
"2000 Agency Universe Study", IIAA/Future
One
Employee Recruitment and Retention
Newsletter, March 2001 edition, 800-878-5331
For a list of schools to contact about career days:
The Florida Association of Post
secondary Schools and Colleges
www.fapsc.org/main/members.asp (850) 488-1721
The Florida Community College System
www.dcc.firn.edu/region1.htm (850) 488-1721
Independent Colleges and
Universities of Florida
www.icuf.org/members.htm (850) 681-3188 |
