If you want to upgrade or change employee benefits, you will likely come across benefit brokers. It’s a job that encompasses a wide range of services. You should analyze your company’s needs and find the benefits broker that can save your company best. This article will serve as a guide for everything you need to know about benefits brokers.
What is a benefits broker?
Benefits brokers are insurance professionals who handle employee benefits issues on behalf of a company. They can customize benefits packages based on your company’s needs, the size of your business, and any additional enhancements you may want for your employees. The best benefits brokers know the best vendors to fit your needs.
Difference between benefits consultants, advisors, and brokers
There is no difference between a benefits consultant, adviser, and broker. Each individual is responsible for providing benefits, products, advice, and services to employers. The only difference may be in how they get paid and some of the specific services they may offer.
Services offered by benefit brokers
Most small to medium-sized businesses offer basic employment benefits. Most benefit brokers can help by providing additional services for your business, like:
- Employee insurance benefits management
- Modern education, enrollment, and administration solutions
- Webinars and continuing education to benefit both employers and employees
- Regional benchmarking to ensure your plan remains competitive
- Assist in maintaining compliance
- Future planning assistance, market review, and vendor assessment
- Benefit strategy and plan recommendations
- Analysis of employee suggestions and needs
Types of insurance benefit brokers handle
Each benefits broker may handle different types of insurance. But most benefits brokers offer the following:
- Health insurance
- Vision insurance
- Life insurance
- Dental insurance
- Flexible health spending accounts
- Disability insurance
- Retirement benefits
Some brokers will also work with you as a partner and provide comprehensive planning, evaluation, employee well-being resources, webinars, continuing education, and regional benchmarking.
Do benefits brokers handle payroll services?
Benefit brokers typically focus on employee benefits, not payroll. However, they may be willing to work in collaboration with you and your payroll administrator for efficiency and legal compliance.
How do benefit brokers get paid?
Benefit brokers usually get paid commissions and fees based on the insurance policies sold to companies. The amount they earn differs daily depending on the organizations they work with, how many employees the businesses have, and which types of insurance they require.
How to hire a benefits broker for your business
Here are five steps that you can take when undertaking a broker selection process:
- Build a strong candidate pool
- Send your candidates a questionnaire
- Compare and score answers and pick finalists
- Conduct finalist interviews
- Save all supporting materials and documentation
Work with Ashton Benefits, a leading employee benefits brokerage, to find the top talent in your industry.
We work with teams nationwide and globally to find HR solutions for our clients that go beyond what the competition can offer. Our staff comes from diverse backgrounds, including pharmaceuticals, compliance, actuarial, and human resources. The breadth of our experience shows up in all our services, with creative approaches that redefine insurance, human resources, and employee benefits. When you need to put together a benefits package that attracts the top talent in your field, we can provide solutions that not only do more for your employees but also save you money.
Contact Ashton Benefits to learn more about our range of services, including our work as an employee benefits brokerage.
