Insurance Agent Exams Suspended for 3 Months Due to COVID-19... "Livelihood at Risk"

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Hyung-gil] Kim Su-jin (pseudonym, 42), who became a career-interrupted woman due to childcare, was officially hired earlier this year as a financial planner (FC) trainee at an insurance general agency (GA). However, her joy was short-lived as she recently received a contract cancellation notice from the company.

The reason given was that the insurance planner qualification exam, overseen by the Life and Non-life Insurance Associations, has not been held for several months due to COVID-19, preventing dozens of people including Kim from taking the exam or working normally.

Kim said, "I understand concerns about group infections, but shouldn't there be a way to replace the exam with an online test? Employment opportunities are blocked without any measures, and I don't know what people who need to earn a living immediately should do."

As the insurance planner qualification exam, administered by the Life and Non-life Insurance Associations, has been completely suspended for over three months, voices demanding its resumption are growing louder. Since jobs are urgently needed, a petition has even appeared on the Blue House's National Petition board asking for alternatives such as online or outdoor exams.

According to the insurance industry on the 14th, a petition was posted on the Blue House National Petition board on the 9th stating, "I decided to join an insurance company and have been preparing for the qualification exam since February, but the exam was canceled just days before, leaving my future uncertain." Petitioner A said, "It is difficult to find other jobs or part-time work, so please prepare various options such as outdoor or online exams so that we can make a living as planners." As of this day, over 4,400 people have agreed with this petition.

Another petitioner posted a complaint directed at financial authorities. Petitioner B said, "The association tried to hold the exam but conditions were difficult. They considered replacing it with an online exam, but I heard the Financial Supervisory Service rejected that option. Other methods like online or outdoor exams are definitely possible and there was time to prepare, so if they just say no, who will take responsibility for the damage?"

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the Life and Non-life Insurance Associations have suspended insurance-related qualification exams from February 24 until this month. Exams for planners, underwriters, and comprehensive asset managers have been canceled or postponed to the second half of this year.

The cancellation of the planner exam has caused huge disruptions not only in producing new personnel but also on the front lines of insurance sales. The annual number of planner exam candidates approaches 240,000. Last year, about 103,000 took the life insurance planner exam, and about 134,000 took the non-life insurance qualification exam.

Assuming 20,000 people take the exam each month, the two-month suspension this year means that about 40,000 new planners have not been produced.

There is also a sense on the insurance sales front that it is difficult to secure new planners due to the exam postponement. Without securing new planners, new contracts are bound to decrease.

A representative from the Non-life Insurance Association said, "Although the number of people agreeing with the petition is not in the hundreds of thousands, considering that most exam candidates are housewives or college graduates, it means they are appealing about issues directly related to their livelihood. We are internally reviewing various methods to resume the exam as soon as possible."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.