Frequently Asked Questions

No. Avail Benefits employees are licensed and unappointed insurance agents. Although we have decades of experience in the insurance industry, we do not sell or services insurance products. We are strategic and analytical consultants to work with the clients for compliance and best practices that bring better results and improved efficiency in the client’s own operations.

No. Avail Benefits has only one source of remuneration. That is directly from the clients who hire us. Our employees have no appointments with agents or companies. We have no actual or perceived conflict of interest, inherent or implicit.  

There is no difference. To be able to transact insurance in the State of Florida, an Agent must be licensed by the State of Florida and appointed by an insurance company. The State of Florida does not see a difference between the titles. The selected title of Agent, Broker or Consultant are all seen as insurance agents by the state of Florida and appointing insurance companies.

Yes. All policies are required to go through a duly licensed and appointed agent to be transacted. There are two types of agents in Florida, captive and independent. Captive agents are appointed and employed by one insurance company exclusively and independent agents are appointed by multiple insurance companies. The independent designation does not remove the inherent conflict that comes from the necessity of being at the discretion of an insurance company to receive an appointment.

It depends. This question must be evaluated for each government entity and for each service being provided. There are many factors to consider such as government entities having procurement requirements to be considered when spending taxpayer funds. This should be determined by an experienced insurance industry professional with no inherent conflict that may create bias.

Yes. This is often neglected by government entities and the source of findings from the Florida Auditor General. Health insurance policies are one-year policies every year. A renewal is a new contract that must be analyzed, negotiated, and accepted by the government entity each year and approved by the governing board. Best practices would include the use of an insurance expert to evaluate the offering that is not the agent of record with an existing inherent conflict of interest due to the appointing authority of the insurance company.

An insurance company is the entity that takes on financial responsibility through a contract to pay claims and manage the provider network among many other things. Insurance companies are primarily governed by the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. An insurance agent is the person or company that is responsible for delivering and effectuating the contract selected by the government unit to provide insurance coverage to the employees. Insurance agents are primarily governed by the Florida Department of Financial Services.

No. This is a common misconception among government entities. Agents and companies are authorized and governed by agent law and insurance company law, often referred to as chapter 600 laws, as well as contract law between agents and companies. Government entities are authorized and governed by completely different laws and regulations. Examples are Florida Statutes 112.08, 119, 286, and 287. The government entity cannot transfer the responsibility and accountability they are assigned with by using an agent and company.