Korea Non-Life Insurance Association names '2026 Blue Ribbon Consultants'

13th-showing retention rate of 97.4% beats industry average by 10 percentage points

Those in their 60s make up 48.3% of honorees; oldest recipient is 80

[Provided by the Korea Non-Life Insurance Association]
[Provided by the Korea Non-Life Insurance Association]

A total of 1,602 insurance agents have been named this year to the Blue Ribbon Consultant designation, awarded to the top 1% of solicitors in the non-life insurance industry. Nearly half of the honorees are veterans with more than 30 years of experience in insurance sales.

The Korea Non-Life Insurance Association announced Wednesday that it had selected 1,602 people as its "2026 Blue Ribbon Consultants." The figure represents roughly 1% of the 156,611 exclusive solicitors registered with non-life insurers as of the end of last year — a pool that includes 144,229 exclusive agents and 12,382 exclusive individual agencies.

The Blue Ribbon Consultant program is a certification system the association has operated since 2011 to promote a culture of complete sales and boost the professional pride of insurance solicitors. This year marks its 16th edition. Candidates must first have been recognized as outstanding certified agents for five consecutive years from 2022 through 2026, and are then evaluated on their 13th- and 25th-showing contract retention rates and total number of contracts to identify the top 1% of exclusive agents. To qualify as an outstanding certified agent, a solicitor must have zero cases of incomplete sales, no sanctions in the past three years, and a high contract retention rate. The certification period runs from Thursday through Sept. 30 next year.

The certified agents' contract quality indicators far exceeded industry averages. Their average 13th-showing retention rate stood at 97.4%, and their 25th-showing rate at 89.8% — outpacing last year's non-life industry averages of 86.8% and 70.8% by 10.6 percentage points and 19.0 percentage points, respectively. Not a single violation of solicitation rules or incomplete sale was recorded among the group.

By years of experience, those with 30 or more years in insurance sales were the largest group at 777 people, or 48.5%. Those with between 20 and 30 years of experience followed at 639, or 39.9%. Agents with at least 20 years of experience accounted for 88.4% of all honorees.

By age group, those in their 60s were the most numerous at 774, or 48.3%, followed by those in their 50s at 627 (39.2%), those in their 40s at 95 (5.9%), those aged 70 or older at 95 (5.9%), and those in their 30s at 11 (0.7%). The youngest honoree was a 33-year-old man and the oldest an 80-year-old woman. Women outnumbered men among the recipients, with 992 women (61.9%) against 610 men (38.1%).

"This shows that insurance agents can consistently pursue economic activity and have their expertise recognized through their own experience and capabilities, regardless of gender or age," the association said.

The association expressed hope that the program would serve as a benchmark for consumers seeking a trustworthy agent to consult. Because insurance policies require ongoing maintenance and management after purchase, choosing an agent whose competence has been verified through long-term performance allows policyholders to receive service with confidence, the association said. For the certified agents themselves, the designation serves as official recognition of their track record in complete sales and contract management.

To support the certified agents' business activities, the association plans to operate a dedicated Blue Ribbon Consultant promotional website, insert the certification logo in subscription forms, run print advertisements and other media promotions, and provide commemorative items such as plaques and badges. This year, in line with revisions to the selection process, the association will also produce and present a newly designed plaque symbolizing the "top 1%" distinction.

Meanwhile, the number of honorees fell by 212 from last year's 1,814. The decline reflects a tightening of the criteria this year, under which only the top 1% of agents who have been recognized as outstanding certified agents for five consecutive years are eligible.


won@heraldcorp.com