B.C. brokers’ general continuing education program undergoes facelift

The Insurance Council of British Columbia, which regulates the province’s brokers, has published new guidelines for its General Continuing Education (C/E) Program, including a focus on strictly insurance-related aspects of the business.
As of June 1, 2008, the General C/E Program content will exclude “non-insurance areas” of education related to the business of insurance agents, adjusters and salespersons.
“While the non-insurance areas of education are useful to the overall development of a licensee, the General C/E Program will focus on education directly related to developing insurance knowledge,” the council notes in an April 2008 bulletin.
“Only C/E credits based on technical education will qualify. Technical education includes courses, programs or seminars that directly relate to:
1. general insurance products;
2. compliance with insurance legislation and requirements such as the Insurance Council of British Columbia’s (“Council”) Code of Conduct, Council Rules, the Insurance Act and privacy legislation;
3. ethics; or
4. errors and omissions.”
The council goes on to note that ” education dealing with professional development issues such as computer training, sales practices and communication will not qualify” for the General C/E Program.
The one exception will be for Level 3 agents and Level 3 adjusters. “As these licence categories relate primarily to management and supervisory positions,” the council notes, “the definition is broadened to include courses relating to management, accounting and human resources.”
Should they choose to offer C/E courses outside the General Program, licensees must first determine whether the offering qualifies as CLE. “Because there are so many opportunities for C/E both in British Columbia and in other jurisdictions, it is neither reasonable nor effective for council to pre-approve or accredit C/E,” the council notes.
In June, the new graduated General C/E Program will set a higher C/E requirement for new licenses. New general agents, adjusters or salespersons must obtain a minimum of eight C/E credits per licence period.
Those who are not “new” licensees ie. those who have been licensed continuously for five years, or have been licensed for five of the past seven years will have their C/E requirement reduced to six C/E credits per licence period.