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Life & Health · Chapter 1 · Industry Basics

Agent

Definition
Authorized to solicit, sell, and transact insurance for specific insurers under contract. Represents the insurer and can bind coverage.
Exam tip
Agent binds, broker doesn't — that's the exam's agent-vs-broker pairing. ⚠️ But in life and health an agent doesn't issue a binder: temporary coverage comes from the conditional receipt given when the application and first premium are taken (ch 3 / ch 7).
Easy to confuse with

These are what this term gets tested against — if you can't tell them apart cold, drill the contrast.

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Verified against primary sources · 2026-08-10