Articles by Andrea Wells

Andrea Wells is vice president of content for Wells Media Group Inc., overseeing coverage for its multiple print and digital platforms. She is a veteran insurance journalist with more than 20 years’ experience covering the property/casualty industry. She has won several awards from the American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE), including awards for original research for her work on Insurance Journal’s annual salary survey of retail insurance agencies and its annual survey of young insurance agents. She can be reached at: awells@wellsmedia.com.

Building and Retaining Talent: Salary and Culture Matter but That’s Not Always Enough

Independent agency owners, producers, and support staff continue to report higher pay, according to Insurance Journal’s national online Agency Salary Survey results. But for the second year in a row, survey respondents report a decline in satisfaction when thinking about …

2025 Begins

What a start to the new year for the insurance industry. January 1 saw two separate incidents that drew attention from the insurance industry as the threat of increasing political and terror risk continues to affect individuals and businesses worldwide. …

Talent, Again

It’s no surprise to independent agencies that talent, quality talent, is hard to find. Employers of every size and industry — across nearly every state — say they are facing unprecedented challenges trying to find enough workers to fill open …

DEI Changes and Support

Legal and social issues have put corporate America’s diversity efforts on defense like never before. But despite the scrutiny, diversity, equity and inclusion programs continue to receive high marks from employees, according to a recent survey from The Conference Board. …

Agency Growth in 2025: Stay Focused on Prospecting, Cross-Selling & Employee Benefits

Predictions of a softer insurance pricing market are on the horizon. Perhaps not in early 2025, but there’s no question the market is stabilizing from the high prices the sector has seen in recent years. Relying on higher revenue from …

Don’t Risk the Agency – E&O Tips on Trials and Trends

When it comes to agency errors and omissions liability there’s nothing more important than playing it safe. One proven way is ensuring that everything is documented properly. But because there is always the threat of an E&O allegation turning into …

Agency E&O Claims Trends to Watch

Special relationships, fiduciary duties, the hard market and disasters, are areas of exposure that agencies need to watch over when it comes to agency E&O, the experts say. Here’s why. Special Relationships One area that is getting extra attention in …

Agency E&O Buyers Report Higher Premiums

According to Insurance Journal’s annual Agency E&O survey, which polls buyers of the coverage on pricing and trends on current market conditions, about 73% of respondents saw an increase in their agency E&O renewal premium in 2024. That’s up from …

Ergonomic Hazards

The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) must do more to address ergonomic hazards at warehouses and delivery companies, where the number of injured workers in the growing sector are on the rise, according to a new report. The …

Making Friends With the Future: Agency Tech Moving at a Faster Pace Than Ever Before

That used to be one of my biggest beefs as an agency owner — I have all of these pieces of tech and none of them talked to each other,” Vonda Copeland, co-owner and vice president of operations at Copeland …