Pros
- no qualification needed: if you are not a ex con or have bankruptcy in recent years you can get "hired"; I don't think you even need to have a GED
Cons
#1: if you are going to start as a brand new agent with zero existing book of business (clients), then 95% chance you won't survive after 1 year, because you won't make enough money on commission (and this "job" is commission only; more on this later in #3) #2: if you decide to "buy in" and purchase a existing agency, then you will survive longer. There's a joke among Farmers agents: "if you want to make $100K in a year, you buy a Farmers agency for $250K, and a year after you will have $100K left". #3: They will dangle a "monthly subsidy" in front of you. Some unethical district managers will tell you it's money Farmers invest in you, but what they don't tell you is that it's really a loan. If you quit or get terminated due to missing the quota, then you have to pay it back. I've had colleagues who owe $10-20K when they left Farmers. #4: Again, you are running a business on your own, so you pay all expenses (licensing, office, etc.) on your own #5: It's your own business, BUT Farmers can tell you what needs to be done. Not in a bossy "If you don't do this you are fired" type of way, but in a friendlier "We are not going to tell you what to do because technically you are not an employee, or else we will have to give you benefits like health insurance. We are just 'recommending' you what to do and if you don't do it people in management won't be very happy and they might remember that there's a clause in your contract that says Farmers can terminate your contract for ANY reason with a 30 day notice" #6: Prices of their policies are usually 20% higher than their competition.