Below you will find some of our most frequently asked questions about passing the insurance exam, becoming a producer, and general industry questions. If you have a question that isn’t answered below, please feel free to email us and we would be glad to find an answer for you.
Initial Licensing Process (16)
One fingerprint card is required to be on file with the Insurance Commissioner to become licensed as a Producer in WA state. You may schedule your fingerprint service for the same time as you take your exam or for a later time with Identogo. Identogo does efingerprints and submits them electronically to the state patrol for you. Fingerprint reservations must be scheduled online through Identogo.com or by phone at (888) 771-5097. You must pay for the service ahead of time with a credit card when you make your appointment.
You pay them $55.00 for the fingerprint card and for electronically filing it with the state patrol ($15.00 to $25.00 fingerprint charge plus $30.00 to $40.00 processing fee). Fingerprint fee is approx. $45 total. You must have your prints processed in order to receive an insurance license. Printing done for other reasons (securities, real estate, etc. do NOT work.) Adding lines to an existing producers license does not require a new set of fingerprints to be taken.
You can apply for your Washington insurance license(s) without having a company appointment. However, you cannot sell insurance/transact business until you are appointed/affiliated with a company as an agent or have a brokers bond.
We can always make accommodations for additional attending students. We have a large classroom so we always accept students into our classes, even walk-in students on the first day of class. Please choose whichever class combination will work best with your schedule.
We don’t do securities, but we’ve worked for years with someone who does. If you’re going for your series 6 and 63, or a few others, here’s a place you can get them!
Professional Training Center
http://www.insuranceeducation.co/securities_series_6_&_63.htm
In the rare case that we have to cancel a class due to inclement weather or a power outage, we will post notification on our Web site and answering machine. If the weather does not permit you to drive to our School safely and class is still being held, please email to reschedule your class or to sign up for self-study makeup.
We do not have a job board. Our school is focused on teaching students about the material that will be on their state exams and we do not want other students or companies influencing or recruiting during this learning process. Slater All Lines Insurance School has a strict no-recruiting policy, as many employers have spent time and money sending students to our school for exam preparation education. We are not responsible for any recruiting attempts that happen outside of our classroom or office, or are offered by other students. Most students attending our school already have a company that they are hired by or working with. However, we do occasionally see students who take the initiative to attend class before looking for a job. Therefore, in our office, we have a job folder with company business cards and help-wanted fliers that companies have sent us, and we are happy to give these to students who come to us and ask.
If you are an employer who is hiring, please email, fax or mail us business cards or a job posting and we will gladly give these out to any student looking for employment.
If you are a student who does not yet have a job in the insurance industry, you may come into our office and we will give you business cards and job postings from insurance companies that are hiring. There are many online resources to help you find insurance jobs, such as Monster, Craigslist and Seattle Times. If you have a specific company that you want to work for, we recommend visiting that company’s Web site for the most up-to-date job postings.
Please feel free to email us and we would be glad to find an answer for you.
The class completion certificates we issue you are valid for 12 months from the completion date of your class, as stated at the bottom of each completion certificate. These certificates act as your entrance ticket into the state exam and you have 12 months until they expire. If you have lost or misplaced your original class completion certificates, we can reissue you new originals at a $10-per-certificate charge. If your certificates have expired and you have not passed your exams, by state law you must clock in the required study hours again.
From the date you order the self-study material from Slater Insurance School, you will have 90 days of unlimited access to the study materials on our Online Classroom. After your 90 days of online access has expired, we offer an additional 30 days at no charge. If you still need more time you may choose to purchase an additional 30 days for $30.00, 90 days for a $50.00 fee; this must be done within 6 months of the original purchase date. Once you receive your course completion certificates from us, you then will have 12 months to take and pass the state exams
Single Line Exams are:
Life Producer, Disability Producer, Property Producer, Casualty Producer, or Personal Lines Producer.
The state exam for each single line of insurance consists of a total of 110 questions, 10 of which are experimental questions and will be non score-able. The cost for a single line exam is $35.00 and you have 150 minutes to complete it.
Combination Exams are:
Property and Casualty Producer or Life and Disability Producer exams each have a total of 160 questions, 10 of which are experimental and will be non score-able. The cost for a combination exam is $52.00 and you will have 195 minutes to complete it.
The following items are required and can be obtained by clicking here:
1. NAIC Uniform Application
2. Fingerprint card
3. Letter of Clearance from current state’s insurance department
4. Fees: $55 for license, eprinting, see identogo.com to set an appointment, approx. $45, $5 filing fee
5. INS -18 Company Appointment/Affiliation form with $20 for each (unless submitted by the insurer thru NIPR)
Once you pass your Washington state insurance exams, you have 180 days (six months) from the date you pass your exams to apply for your insurance license. If you have lost or misplaced your original test sheets from PSI, please contact them directly for replacement. If you do not send in for your insurance license within the 180-day window, please look at your class completion certificates from us to see how much longer you have to retake the state exams before you also have to repeat the insurance classes with us.
If you have registered and paid for a class and wish to cancel before the start date of your scheduled class, please send us an email or call our office. There is a $25 cancellation fee that will be subtracted from your refund amount. You will not be eligible for any refund if you cancel after the class has started.
If you register for class or order materials at our office we accept cash, company check, money order and cashier’s check, as well as Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover credit cards. No personal checks are accepted.
If you register for class or order materials through our Web site, we use Authorize.net as our credit card processor and they will accept all major credit or debit cards as well as Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover credit cards. If you would like to pay directly out of your bank account, to expedite your registration/order, please pay with your credit or debit card instead.
Soliciting
- Urging or advising prospective purchasers to buy a policy or insure with a company.
- Initiating sales over the telephone or any way other than a face-to-face attempt to solicit or sell insurance, such as Internet, social media or advertisements.
Selling
- Disseminating information about coverages in general, or for any particular policy, except that this shall not prohibit the dissemination of buyers’ guides or applications for coverage in response to requests from prospective policyholders.
- Disseminating information as to rates in general or for any particular policy where the rate cannot be secured by referring to a published or printed list of standard rates.
- Completing or signing applications for insurance.
- Making or proposing to make an insurance contract.
- Authorizing the issuance or delivery of certificates of insurance, endorsements, binders or insurance policies.
Negotiating
- Discussing or describing the coverages or terms of a proposed contract of insurance with a prospective policyholder, including counseling about which coverages to buy.
- Discussing the effect of age, health or other risk-related conditions of the prospective policyholder.
- Collecting premiums in person at other than a recorded place of business.
- Responding to a policyholder’s request for advice or counsel regarding policy provisions or coverage.
- Initiating an inquiry about the terms of existing coverage, except exclusively in the course of the clerical duties.
- Recommending or independently initiating additions or deletions to an insured’s policy.
We don’t do headshots here but I have met a few professional photographers at local networking events. The links to their site are listed here.
- Tina Tang
Parris Blue Photography
www.parrisblue.com
425.870.3319 - Jared M. Burns
Jared M. Burns Photography
www.jaredmburns.com/headshots
206.659.7468
info@jaredmburns.com - Marv Heston
Heston Photography
https://hestonphoto.com/info/hs_business.htm
425.402.7000
Insurance Exam Testing (7)
Yes, please call for details. 425.771.4870
Please call 855-205-5825 or go online to https://test-takers.psiexams.com/waoic
There is a 3 step process: You will create an account with PSIexams, choose and pay for your exam, then schedule the exam.
Qualifying military veterans may receive reimbursement of their insurance exam fees. To determine eligibility, please visit the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs website (www.benefits.va.gov) or call 888-442-4551.
You will need to be fingerprinted and it must be submitted electronically to the Washington State Patrol.
- Electronic fingerprints for license candidates are mandatory. You may schedule your fingerprint service for the same time as you take your exam at the testing center. Please call Identogo / Morpho Trust @ 888-771-5097 or go to www.identogo.com to arrange for your fingerprint service. You must pay for the service ahead of time with a credit card when you make your appointment.
- Your cost: about $50.00 for the fingerprinting.
- Candidates are not issued a license until their background check is completed. If you have an existing insurance license, you will not need to be printed again. Prints taken for any other reason (securities, real estate, etc.) will not qualify.
Everything you need to learn for the exam is in our courses. For details please see the content outlines available here
http://proctor2.psionline.com/programs/Instructions/WA%20Insurance%20Outlines%2020190201.pdf
This is the booklet from the exam provider detailing what is needed to take an exam, exam locations, times, costs, etc. Listed below the candidate handbook on psiexams.com are the content outlines for each exam. Each content outline is a separate download. Please use the links below to download the most current Candidate Information Bulletin from PSI.
Look for this image in the top right hand corner –
Beginning October 1, 2019, you will have the option to take your exam at any of the 11 established test centers or find out if you are eligible to use a new remote testing option. The locations can be found in the candidate handbook.
Remote testing
Remote testing means that you may take your exam at home.
In order to qualify for this option, there are specific requirements. When you register to take your test remotely, you’ll need to have a laptop or desktop computer (not a smartphone or tablet). Your device will be tested for compatibility at the time you register. If your device or internet connection do not meet the criteria, you will have to set an appointment to test at a physical PSI location.
Remote testing is a new testing platform being released Oct. 1, 2019. During our pilot period for this program, only single-line insurance exams will be available: life, disability, property, casualty and personal lines.
Combination exams at home will be available on March 1, 2020
Bellevue
4122 Factoria Blvd. S.E. Suite 303
Bellevue, WA 98006
- From I-405 – Exit 10 for Coal Creek Parkway towards Factoria.
- Turn left onto 128th Ave SE/Factoria Blvd SE. The test center will be on the right.
- From 1-90 E – Take Exit 10B. Turn Right onto 128th Ave SE/Factoria Blvd SE.
- Make a U-turn at SE 41st Pl. The test center will be on the right.
- From I-90 W – Take Exit 10 to I-405 S. Follow directions for I-405.
Arlington
18810 59th Dr. NE, Bldg. 44A
Arlington, WA 98223
- From Interstate 5 take the WA-531/172nd St NE exit, exit 206.
- Go East on 172nd St NE. Turn left on 59th Ave NE.
- Turn left on 188th St NE. The test site will be straight ahead.
- It is a 2 story grey building that says Arlington Flight Services on it.
Everett
1010 S.E. Everett Mall Way, Suite 208
Everett, WA 98208
North on I-5, take Exit 189 (WA-526 W/WA-527 N to Mukilteo/Whidbey Is. Ferry/Broadway/Everett Mall Way).
- Bear right to WA-526 W / WA-527 N.
- You will see a sign reading “WA-527 N to Broadway/Everett Mall Way.
- At light, turn left on Bothell-Everett Hwy (SR-527) and go north for 0.5 mile to light at Broadway “ get into left turn lane.
- Turn left onto Broadway which then becomes SE Everett Mall Way.
- Go approx. 0.8; just past light at West Mall Dr get into middle left/right turn lane and turn left immediately before the Chevron gas station.
- Proceed down lane approx. one block to 1010 behind the gas station.
South on I-5, take Exit 189 WA-526 W to Mukilteo/Whidbey Is.
- Ferry/Everett Mall Way – keep to the left.
- You will see a sign reading “To Everett Mall Way”.
- Take ramp to right to light at Everett Mall Way.
- Proceed through light onto SE Everett Mall Way (stay in left lane).
- Go approx. 0.8; just past light at West Mall Dr get into middle left/right turn lane and turn left immediately before the Chevron gas station.
- Proceed down lane approx. one block to 1010 behind the gas station.
Online Classroom & Self Study (3)
At least twenty (20) hours of recorded studying time is required per individual line of insurance, with the lines being Life, Disability (Health), Property, and Casualty. The entire curriculum must be completed. We strongly recommend studying more than 20 hours per line before going in for the actual state exam. We also recommend using our Online Classroom practice quizzes until you score at least 90% on every test, each time you take it, before taking the state exam. This can greatly increase your chances of passing.
Effective July 23, 2023, the education requirement for the minimum 20 hours has been repealed by the legislature. You will still need to study 20 hours in order to pass the exam, you will no longer need the certificate of completion proving that requirement to gain admittance to the exam.
As soon as you complete your purchase, you will receive two emails. One is a receipt and one is titled, Your Account on Slater All Lines Insurance School. The Account email will contain a link to the online classroom, along with your username and temporary password. Once you log into the online classroom, you can change your password under My Account (top-right) and Account Details (left-side navigation). If you added a textbook to your order, it will be mailed out to you no later than the end of the next business day, which are Monday through Friday.
The current version of our Online Classroom keeps track of your study time, whether reading the textbook tutorials or taking practice exams, as long as you are logged into your account. Your total study time is shown to you on every page, and once you have reached the required study hours for your course, you can then prompt a certificate of completion to be generated. Your certificate is available immediately to save and print. Our system cannot keep track of your time spent studying offline, outside of the practice exams. You must keep track of your own hours on the timesheet we provided, then send us in your timesheet so that we can issue you a certificate of completion. Get a timesheet here.
Continuing Insurance Education (9)
- Waivers can be issued for military-activation or medical reasons.
- If you have a question about a waiver, email Producer Licensing and Oversight’s education analyst.
- You took them from an approved provider. “Approved” means a provider has been granted authority by our office to offer insurance courses with CE credit.
- You are not repeating a course you completed in your current renewal cycle. (Many courses have similar titles, so make sure you’re not repeating the same course number.)
- You completed your courses during your current renewal cycle (between your last expiration date and current expiration date).
The only way to renew your Washington State insurance license is online. In order to renew a license in WA State, 24 hours of Continuing Education including 3 hours of ethics are required to be completed. For more information please visit https://www.insurance.wa.gov/renewing-your-individual-license
- A certificate of completion is valid for 24 months from the date of completion. Course credit may only be applied toward renewal if completed within the current renewal cycle (between your last expiration date and current expiration date). A producer must maintain each continuing education certificate for 3 years
- For reinstatement, courses must be completed within the 24 months prior to your application for reinstatement.
- Excess credits cannot be carried over from one renewal cycle to the next.
We have a continuing education course that has been assigned the required 3 hours of Ethics content, and if you choose this course, you do not need to take a separate Ethics course. If however you do not take this course with the combined 3 hours of Ethics content, you will need to take a separate Ethics course. We have several Ethics courses available that will help you fulfill this 3 hour requirement.
You can now repeat the same course numbers that you received credit for during your last renewal. You will find each course number listed on your continuing education completion certificate.
After completing your 24 hours of continuing education (including 3 hours of ethics) and receiving your completion certificates, please complete the following steps:
- Log onto the Insurance Commissioner’s website @ www.insurance.wa.gov
- Choose the For Producers tab (at top of page, center tab)
- Scroll down to where Login has 3 options listed under the heading.
- Click on Licensee Login
This will bring you to the OIC Online Services login page. Key in the letters LIC followed by your license number. If you are registered, key in your password. If you do not know your user id or your password, follow the “forgot user id/password” link. If you have not registered, click the ‘register’ link and follow the instructions.
Once you are logged in, click on the Renew License link. You will need your certificate of completion for verification of the course number, provider code, and completion date located on it. You will then be able to fill out the renewal application, pay for the renewal of your license, and print your new license immediately.
If you have any questions, please contact the Insurance
Commissioner’s Office at (360)-725-7144 Monday – Friday, 8:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M. Or click on the link at the bottom of the Producers page from the commissioner’s site.
- You may take any approved insurance continuing education course. An approved course is offered by bt approved providers.
- You don’t have to take courses with subject matter that matches the lines of authority on your license.
- Certification courses for annuities, flood and long term care also apply towards the continuing education hours. Prelicense courses for another line of insurance do not apply towards continuing education hours.
- Non-residents do not have to meet WA CE requirements to renew their Washington state license. However, there are some education requirements for transacting long-term care insurance business.
- There are also requirements for flood insurance education and annuity suitability training, but you may have met these education requirements in your home state.
Long-Term Care Certification (2)
The WA LTC 4 Hour Refresher course is the one you need for your renewal. You may order the WA LTC 4-hour Refresher Course by itself or as part of your 24 hours of continuing education.
The WA LTC 4 Hour Refresher course is the one you need for your renewal. You may order the WA LTC 4-hour Refresher Course by itself or as part of your 24 hours of continuing education.