Customer service representatives work in many businesses including the insurance industry. The insurance customer service representative provides a connection between insurance customers and the companies that provide policies. Representatives answer questions and complaints that customers have regarding their policy. The customer service representative provides information to potential new customers who have questions regarding service, coverage and costs.

Job Duties

The representative answers customer’s calls or correspondence regarding the insurance company’s products. The questions may involve new policies and cost or existing customer policies. The role of the customer service representative is to see that the customer’s problems are resolved satisfactorily.

A service representative has the ability to review the customer’s policy to answer questions regarding coverage and claims. The customer service representative may not be a licensed agent, but can provide information regarding policies that may help sell a policy to a customer. The call is directed to a sales agent to complete the transaction.

Questions that cannot be answered by the customer service representative are directed to agents, claims specialists and investigators who can provide answers. Insurance customer service representatives may handle policy changes and renewals, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Skills

Insurance customer service representatives must have the ability to handle difficult customer phone calls. Customers may call with complaints about insurance coverage and policy. The insurance representative must have verbal communication skills to provide information to customers. Written communication skills are necessary to document service calls. Insurance representatives must have good typing skills and basic computer skills.

Education and Qualifications

Insurance customer service representatives may require an associate’s or bachelor’s degree although some companies only require a high school education. Training is provided on the job and usually focuses on the company products, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Salary

The average salary for an insurance customer service representative is $39,000 as of June 2010, according to Indeed.com. Customer service representatives in insurance companies can advance to other positions within the company such as supervisor or manager.

Job Outlook

The job outlook for those in the customer service industry is expected to grow by 18 percent between 2008 and 2018, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.