Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers Of America

What Does Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers Of America Mean?

The Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America (IIABA) is a professional organization comprising more than 300,000 independent insurance agents and brokers who are not directly employed by insurance companies. These agents and brokers are affiliated with various insurance companies and offer a wide range of life, non-life, and health insurance products, as well as financial services. Because IIABA members aren’t tied to a single carrier, they can quote policies from several companies at once, which is helpful when you want to shop across top-rated car insurance companies instead of getting a single captive quote.

The organization is also known as the “Big I.”

Insuranceopedia Explains Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers Of America

Originally founded in 1896 as an association of fire insurance agents, the IIABA has since expanded to include agents from all lines of insurance. The change in name from the National Local Association of Fire Insurance Agents to the National Association of Insurance Agents in 1913 reflected the strong demand to establish the association as an independent entity. In 1975, the name Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America (IIABA) was adopted to project an image of diversity and independence. Today, the IIABA operates an online marketing company available exclusively to its members. Consumers often use Big I agents to compare life insurance options from several carriers in one sitting, since a single independent agent can pull quotes that would otherwise require contacting each insurer individually.