Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Insurance Service Professional

🎯 Role Definition

The Insurance Service Professional is a client-facing specialist responsible for day-to-day policy servicing, endorsements, renewals, billing and collections, claim intake and coordination, and compliance documentation for agency or carrier portfolios. This role combines technical insurance knowledge (policy language, coverage verification, ACORD forms) with high-level customer service to retain and grow client relationships, reduce claims leakage, and streamline operations through use of agency management systems and process improvements.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Customer Service Representative or Insurance CSR
Claims Assistant / Claims Intake Representative
Licensed Insurance Producer or Account Coordinator

Advancement To:

Senior Insurance Service Representative / Team Lead
Account Manager / Account Executive
Claims Specialist or Claims Adjuster
Underwriting Assistant / Junior Underwriter

Lateral Moves:

Underwriting Support Specialist
Broker/Producer (Sales)
Risk Management Analyst

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Deliver exceptional, timely client service by answering policy inquiries, explaining coverages, and resolving client issues via phone, email, and client portals to improve retention and satisfaction.
Process and document policy endorsements, cancellations, reinstatements and mid-term changes accurately in the agency management system to ensure policy records and effective dates are current and compliant.
Manage renewal workflow from pre-renewal notices to presentation of renewal terms, coordinating with producers, underwriters, and clients to obtain signatures and bind coverage before expiration.
Administer invoices, payments, and premium financing orders, reconcile billing discrepancies, post receipts, and follow up on past-due accounts with a consistent collection cadence.
Perform full policy servicing for new business submissions including data entry, verification of applicant information, installation of coverages, and issuance of policy packages and declarations.
Intake and triage incoming claims by gathering initial facts, assigning claim numbers, creating claim files, and communicating next steps to clients and producers while coordinating with claims adjusters.
Prepare, review and issue Certificates of Insurance (COIs) and proof of coverage requests, verifying required endorsements and limits, and ensuring certificates meet contractual requirements.
Process ACORD applications and other carrier forms, ensuring accurate completion of risk information, signatures, and carrier-specific submission rules to reduce underwriting back-and-forth.
Coordinate endorsements and policy changes with carriers and underwriting teams, following up on outstanding underwriting conditions, and ensuring timely issuance of policy documents.
Maintain and update client files, supporting documentation, and audit logs in accordance with internal controls and regulatory record retention requirements.
Conduct coverage and policy audits for existing clients to identify gaps, recommend coverage adjustments, and collaborate with producers to present tailored solutions.
Support producer and broker relationships by preparing quotes, assembling submission packages, and communicating insurer decisions and payment terms to clients.
Track and report key service metrics (turnaround time, renewal retention rate, billing aging, COI turnaround) and propose process improvements to increase operational efficiency.
Ensure compliance with state insurance regulations, anti-money laundering (AML) requirements, and company SOPs, and assist with regulatory examinations and audits as needed.
Facilitate cancellations and non-renewals by preparing documentation, communicating implications to insureds, and coordinating with underwriting and compliance to mitigate risk.
Assist with underwriting decision support by compiling loss histories, certificates, vehicle schedules, and other underwriting documents to accelerate quote turnaround.
Escalate complex client or underwriting issues to managers and underwriters, coordinate cross-functional responses, and document resolution steps for continuous improvement.
Train and mentor junior service staff on agency management systems, policy servicing best practices, and customer communication standards to raise team competency.
Prepare periodic client-facing and internal reports such as policy rollups, loss runs, premium summaries, and renewal scorecards to support strategic account reviews.
Follow departmental SLA’s for response times and task completion, continuously prioritize workload across multiple clients, and utilize automation tools to optimize repetitive processes.
Participate in product change rollouts, system upgrades, and implementation projects; validate that conversion data and new workflows maintain policy integrity and service continuity.
Manage vendor and third-party service interactions (inspection reports, premium finance companies, certificate vendors), ensuring timely receipt and incorporation of third-party deliverables.
Support marketing and cross-sell initiatives by identifying opportunities within existing accounts for ancillary products (bond, umbrella, cyber, EPLI) and providing documentation for producer follow-up.
Conduct periodic quality assurance reviews on completed files for accuracy, completeness, and adherence to regulatory and carrier requirements, implementing corrective actions as needed.

Secondary Functions

Contribute to process-mapping and continuous improvement initiatives aimed at reducing cycle time for endorsements, COIs, and renewals.
Assist with ad-hoc reporting requests and data pulls from the agency management system to support audits, loss control, and executive decision-making.
Participate in cross-functional project teams for system migrations, testing workflows, and validating data integrity during implementations.
Support training documentation and knowledge base updates to capture new procedures, carrier requirements, and best practices for the service team.
Collaborate with underwriting and claims to analyze loss trends and provide insights that drive underwriting guidelines and client risk management recommendations.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Policy administration expertise across personal and commercial lines, including endorsements, cancellations, renewals and reissues.
Claims intake and coordination experience, including creating claim files, obtaining loss runs, and liaising with adjusters.
Proficiency with agency management systems such as Applied Epic, AMS360, HawkSoft, or similar platforms.
Strong knowledge of ACORD forms, certificates of insurance, and common endorsement language.
Billing, invoicing and premium finance administration including reconciliations and collections processes.
Familiarity with state insurance regulations and compliance requirements (licensure, record retention, cancellation notices).
Advanced Microsoft Excel skills (pivot tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, data filters) for reporting and reconciliation.
Experience preparing and interpreting loss runs, policy declarations, and premium audit documentation.
Ability to navigate carrier portals and eDocs to submit applications, track endorsements, and obtain policy documents.
Basic understanding of underwriting fundamentals and exposure assessment to support risk selection and quoting.

Soft Skills

Exceptional verbal and written communication skills tailored for brokers, insureds, and carrier representatives.
Strong organizational skills and the ability to prioritize high-volume workloads while meeting SLA commitments.
Keen attention to detail with a focus on accuracy for policy data and contractual documents.
Customer-centric attitude and conflict resolution skills to manage escalations and preserve client relationships.
Analytical problem-solving ability to reconcile billing issues, coverage disputes, and claim coordination.
Team player mindset with experience mentoring peers and sharing best practices.
Time management and multitasking skills to balance renewals, endorsements, and customer requests.
Professionalism and discretion when handling confidential client and policyholder information.
Initiative and continuous improvement orientation to streamline processes and adopt automation.
Adaptability to changing carrier rules, system upgrades, and evolving product offerings.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

High school diploma or GED required.

Preferred Education:

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Risk Management, Insurance, or a related field preferred.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Risk Management & Insurance
Business Administration
Finance
Finance / Accounting

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

2–5 years of insurance operations, policy service, or claims support experience (commercial and/or personal lines).

Preferred:

3+ years of progressive insurance service experience, familiarity with agency management systems (Applied Epic, AMS360), and a current Property & Casualty license (or willingness to obtain within 90 days).