Twelve questions to ask before you join any agency network

Written to be used against us as much as against anybody else. If a network is uncomfortable with a question on this list, that discomfort is the answer.

Ownership

1. Do I own my book and my expirations outright, from day one?
2. If I leave, what happens to the clients I brought and the clients I wrote while a member?
3. Who owns the data: my policy records, my client list?

Money

1. What is the commission arrangement, exactly?
2. What fees exist: joining, monthly, technology, conditional?
3. How is contingency and profit share calculated and paid?
4. What has group contingency actually paid a member my size in the last two years?

Markets

1. Which carriers, in my states, for my lines?
2. Are appointments mine or the network's?
3. Is there production pressure, and what happens if I miss it?

Getting out

1. What notice do I give, and what does it cost?
2. Can you show me the exit clause before I sign?

UAA's answers are published here, and if one of them is missing when you read it, ask.