Policy delivery and explaining the contract

Delivery is the last step of field underwriting

Underwriting ends when the carrier issues a policy, but the sale is not finished until the contract is in the client's hands and the client understands it. Personal delivery — rather than dropping the policy in the mail — is the professional standard because it lets you confirm the client received the contract, answer questions while the coverage is fresh, and gather any paperwork the insurer still needs.

As a licensed life, accident, and health agent you act on behalf of the insurer in the field, and your authority and conduct in that role are governed by the licensing law (Tex. Ins. Code ch. 4054). Delivery is a moment where that authority is very visible to the client, so handle it deliberately.

What you do at the delivery appointment

1. Confirm the policy matches the application. Compare the insured, the owner, the beneficiary, the face amount, the plan, the premium, and the premium mode. If the carrier issued the policy other than as applied for — a rating, an exclusion rider, a reduced amount — say so plainly and explain the change before anything is signed.
2. Obtain the delivery receipt. The signed receipt documents the date the contract was handed over, which is the date that starts time-sensitive rights such as the free-look period.
3. Obtain a statement of continued good health when the insurer requires one. If health has changed since the application, do not conceal it; report it to the carrier.
4. Collect any outstanding premium if the policy was issued without the initial premium having been paid, and give a receipt.

Explaining the contract, provision by provision

Walk the client through the pieces of the contract rather than reciting the whole document:

• The free-look (right to examine) period and how to exercise it for a full refund
• The effective date and when coverage actually began
• Premium amount, mode, and where to send payment, plus the grace period and reinstatement
• The incontestability and misstatement of age or sex provisions
• Exclusions, limitations, waiting periods, and any riders
• Beneficiary designations and how to change them
• Policy loans, nonforfeiture, or dividend options if the plan has them
• Where to find the customer service and claims contact information

Leave the client able to say, in their own words, what the policy pays, what it does not pay, what it costs, and what to do next.

Say only what the contract says

Everything you state at delivery is subject to the unfair and deceptive practices law (Tex. Ins. Code ch. 541). Misrepresenting the terms, benefits, or dividends of a policy, or making misleading comparisons to another policy, is prohibited — and an oral "reassurance" that contradicts the written contract is exactly that kind of misrepresentation. If a client asks about something the contract does not clearly cover, get the carrier's written answer instead of guessing.

Close by scheduling a review, asking for referrals, and documenting the appointment in your file.