The TRUTH About Primerica – Scam Or Legit?

Are you looking for a Primerica review to determine if the insurance company is a scam, multi-level marketing company, or pyramid scheme?

Many new agents are brought into insurance sales through Primerica’s recruiting effort.

However, many wonder if Primerica is a legit company based on their first interaction.

In today’s article, I reveal the truth about Primerica, and what (surprisingly) is concerning about working with Primerica.

Also, I’ll also address:

• how the Primerica business opportunity works,
• how Primerica agents make money,
• my opinions of a Primerica job, and,
• steps disgruntled Primerica agents can take to find the right insurance agency to work with.

Let’s start!

PS: Check out my insurance sales jobs reviews of other agencies for more information.

Overview

• Primerica = Scam?
• MLM 101
• Getting Paid
• My Thoughts

Is Primerica A Scam?

Allow me to address the most pressing questions many have reading this Primerica review article.

Is Primerica a legitimate company? Is Primerica a scam you should avoid?

Here’s the truth…

Primerica IS a legitimate company. 

In fact, they are a publicly-traded company on the stock market, and have operated for decades, helping people with their life insurance needs.

Further, people DO make money in a Primerica career.

Many attest to their positive experience working for the company and the income they make.

But here’s the thing…

Just because the company is legitimate, doesn’t mean that it is the best insurance agency to work for.

In fact, ALL insurance IMOs and agencies claim their organization is the best thing since sliced bread.

It’s only through comparing one insurance sales business to another that you can determine which agency is best FOR YOU.

Luckily, by the end of this article, you’ll have a good idea of what the answer is as I describe the different variables.

Is Primerica A MLM/Multi Level Marketing?

If Primerica isn’t a scam, why do so many people say it is?

One reason is because of their multi-level marketing (MLM) culture of recruiting.

In case you didn’t know, MLM companies encourage new recruits to recruit friends, family, and co-workers into their downline.

The concept is that you can increase your income through duplication, faster than simply selling a product alone.

In turn, this creates a passive income stream, as you make commissions off of every sale your downline recruits make.

An emphasis on recruiting

In short, Primerica follows a multi-level marketing formula of duplication and recruitment.

If you attend a Primerica opportunity meeting, you’ll notice a sizable effort placed on recruiting new agents recruiting others.

And if you think this sounds silly, I tend to agree with you!

Not that there’s anything wrong building an agency. It’s what I do in my national agency. 

I recruit agents and make money off of each of their sales. It’s a great business and I love it.

Do First Things First

However, you must learn to crawl before learning to walk.

You need to develop your skill set as an insurance agent prior to bringing on new agents. 

Why?

Because they depend on you to train them. 

Imagine if you were a resident doctor. Would you train with a surgeon who’s done zero surgeries?

Of course not!

This is where I find fault with the MLM insurance recruitment strategy Primerica follows.

Master the craft of selling insurance

A new agent should focus on one thing. And that’s getting REALLY good at selling insurance!

Selling insurance is similar to the old guilds and apprenticeship ages. 

This is where fathers would teach their sons his craft for a number of years before striking out on their own and doing the same.

For many, multi-level marketing causes a visceral reaction. 

Usually, they had friends or family pitch them on joining their MLM, making them uncomfortable, avoiding phone calls, texts, emails, and social media postings.

We’ve all had those people in our life!

And the last thing we want is to partake in that seemingly pestering approach and potentially ruin relationships.

The good news is that not all insurance sales opportunities are like this. I’ll cover this later in my wrap-up section.

MLM 101

Now we’ve covered Primerica as both legitimate and operating as a MLM, let’s describe what it’s like working at Primerica and detail how the Primerica business opportunity works.

For full transparency, I have never worked with Primerica.

I’ve always operated as an independent agent and have never sold a single Primerica life insurance plan.

However, I’ve recruited more than 1,000 agents in my career.

I’ve developed a good idea of how Primerica careers work, and feel comfortable informing you of what to expect.

The Interview

As most insurance companies who use a multi-level marketing strategy, expect a smooth, stress-free interview with Primerica

Companies who use multi-level marketing recruitment tactics tend to put little to no emphasis on experience, resume, etc. 

In other words, MLMs hire anyone with a pulse!

Bottom line, don’t worry about the interview.

If anything, Primerica’s managers will spend more time pitching YOU on joining than you spend time pitching them why you should join.

A Typical Day

Here’s what to expect on a typical day in a Primerica job.

Once recruited, you’re shown:

• how Primerica works,
• how to sell the company’s insurance products, and,
• how to generate policy sales.

Like many large insurance marketing organizations, Primerica does not provide any paid-for insurance lead programs to generate interested prospects.

Instead, Primerica teaches you to prospect in your “warm market.”

Your warm market are friends, family, and business associates in your sphere of influence who may show interest in buying (and selling) insurance.

These are your first targets for insurance appointments.

Your job is to contact them, set an appointment, then sell them a policy or recruit them.

Getting Paid

Let’s shift gears and discuss Primerica’s compensation plan and pay structure. 

First, Primerica does NOT pay its insurance agents a salary.

Instead, Primerica is a straight commission sales opportunity. 

In other words, you eat what you kill! No production means no income. 

This is the norm in the insurance business. The best insurance sales opportunities are all 100% commission based.

Primerica start agents around 25% of 30% commission based off of the sale of their insurance products.

Commission goes higher with production and recruiting.

Best Way To Make Money With Primerica?

As you’ll discover, recruiting a large downline of agents is the best way to make a high income with Primerica.

For example, if you look at Primerica’s pay structure, you’ll see compensation promotions depend on mass recruitment, not massive personal production.

As with all sales organizations, Primerica’s pay structure is a direct reflection of what the values are of the company. 

The company’s main concern is recruiting as many agents as possible. That’s why Primerica promotes recruiting heavily.

My Thoughts

Now you have a basic understanding of how Primerica is not a scam, but a heavy recruiting operation, let me give you my opinions on working with Primerica.

I’ve sold insurance since 2011, and recruit agents nationally into my agency that want to become top producers.

I understand what it’s like to be a new agent, and know what matters in order to get the highest levels of success.

What follows are my opinions on what I think the biggest problems are working at Primerica, and how you can avoid these problems.

The Primerica Cult

One complaint I hear from agents is Primerica almost seems like a cult.

People working for Primerica are especially zealous about their product and company in my experience.

In fact, most Primerica agents are completely sold on the “buy term and invest the difference” philosophy.

Many argue any other insurance other than term is a waste and rip off to the client.

Term is good, but not always the best option.

Those who look at insurance holistically think of term insurance as another tool to help solve our clients’ insurance problems, not an end-all-be-all type of product.

For example, for my agents I teach to sell final expense, I almost never advise them to sell a term insurance policy.

Why?

Many seniors in my market are health-compromised and looking for final expense coverage they cannot outlive.

Term insurance does not solve my seniors’ insurance problems because of their health, age, and the possibility of losing coverage if they live longer than the term period.

This is why blind faith in one product is not a good idea, whether working for Primerica or selling any other insurance product.

Lower Commission Than Other Organizations

Like many MLMs, Primerica starts agents off at lower commission levels than with other agencies.

And the less commission upside an agent has, the more difficult it is to make a profit.

Make sure you do your due diligence, comparing other organizations’ commission offers.

For example, my new insurance agents with no experience literally start at commission levels 4 times as high as Primerica!

Commissions aren’t everything

Along with commission levels, you must also consider:

• the quality of training,
• the support you’ll receive, and,
• how advancements in your insurance career look like over the long-haul.

Definitely quiz Primerica on all of this. In fact, question EVERY organization on these same factors. 

If you like what you hear, you may find the offer of partnering with Primerica or another agency appealing, despite lower starting commissions.

What I have found is that there are many strong organizations that offer similar levels of support, mentorship, and training, yet offer compensation levels at a higher amount than Primerica offers.

One Product Solution

Let’s say you believe in the “buy term and invest the difference” philosophy. 

You believe term insurance is the only policy to sell to all of your prospects.

Even though I don’t agree with that premise in 100% of all cases, let me describe what problems you’ll have.

Anytime you work with only one carrier, you pigeonhole your ability to maximize your sales. This limits the number of prospects you can help. 

You see, not all insurance companies take the same set of health conditions. And not all insurance companies price their product the same.

What happens when you have limited product availability?

You have increased odds of selling an noncompetitive policy that could cost you in reduced new business written.

The results could be devastating.

For example, you lose new business opportunities because of non-competitive pricing and tougher underwriting.

Become Independent

What’s the solution? 

The solution is to become an independent agent!

Unlike one-product sales systems, independent agents have access to many insurance carriers.

And having access to multiple companies increases the odds your client receives both competitively-priced coverage with the best value intact.

I’m a big advocate of selling insurance as an independent agent.

And if you think about it, you’d want your mother buying insurance from an independent agent over a one-company agent, right?

Would you want any sales person selling something to your Mom that’s overpriced relative to other options and isn’t the best deal?

Of course you wouldn’t. You want Mom to get the best deal in terms of coverage and value.

This is why the independent agent insurance sales model is usually the best outcome for our clients. Better selection at better prices!

A Couple Of Final Points

Primerica Vs. WFG/World Financial Group? 

Some agents wonder what the difference is between Primerica and what’s known as World Financial Group (WFG).

In essence, they operate very similarly. Both are multi-level marketing oriented insurance agencies focusing on recruitment. .

Ultimately, you’ll find more similarities in company culture and structure than differences, especially when it comes to recruiting and commission levels.

How To Quit Primerica  

If you’re reading this and agreeing with a lot of what I’m saying, give serious consideration to changing affiliations from Primerica to another insurance agency.

Quitting Primerica is simple.

Simply take time to find a new organization to work with. 

Interview different agencies to learn about their sales and marketing systems.

You’ll find many that aren’t a good fit, and a few that seem like they are.

Ask about:

• The company culture.
• Is production more important than recruiting? 
• Are you 100% vested in owning your book of business from day one? 
• What’s your starting commission levels? 
• How do you get higher commission levels?

Any good agency will answer these questions with full transparency.

In fact, if you get push back asking these questions, that’s a huge red flag! 

If you’re not happy with your Primerica career, this will probably be the best thing you ever do for your insurance career.

Companies Like Primerica

Let’s take a look at some insurance agencies and companies similar to Primerica in case you’re interested in doing a comparison.

Symmetry

Symmetry Financial Group is an insurance marketing organization based out of Swannanoa, North Carolina. 

SFG specializes in several life insurance markets, primarily the mortgage protection insurance market. The company also offers final expense insurance, a type of whole life insurance designed to cover medical bills and funeral expenses after the policyholder’s passing. 

Bankers Life

Bankers Life was established in 1879 in Chicago, Illinois. The company is a subsidiary of CNO Financial Group.

Bankers Life offers life insurance, long-term care, annuities, Medicare (Supplements, Advantage Plans, Part D prescription drug coverage), critical illness insurance, as well as vision and dental plans. It targets the senior market, typically people age 60 and older who are near retirement. 

People Helping People (PHP)

People Helping People was established in 2009 in Northridge, California. The company serves the middle markets for insurance-based financial planning. It focuses on term insurance, index universal life insurance, and fixed indexed annuities.

American Income Life (AIL)

American Income Life, a wholly owned subsidiary of Globe Life Insurance, is a major provider of supplemental life insurance. The company was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in Waco, Texas. 

American Income Life’s core markets are labor unions, credit unions, and associations for insurance solicitation. Its insurance products include life insurance and supplemental health.

New York Life

New York Life, established in 1845, is the largest mutual life insurance company in the country. It offers premium life insurance, long-term care insurance, retirement income insurance, and investment plans, including annuities, mutual funds, and ETF saving plans.

USHEALTH Advisors

USHEALTH Advisors is a wholly-owned national sales and distribution subsidiary of USHEALTH Group, one of the largest employers of health insurance agents in the United States. 

USHEALTH offers individual health coverage plans and a number of related supplementary products. It specializes in marketing innovative and affordable health coverage plans. The company is focused on providing healthcare solutions to individuals and families, as well as self-employed and small business owners. 

Equis

Equis is a marketing organization for independent insurance agents and agency builders. 

Its main product is mortgage protection life insurance, designed to reduce or eliminate the threat of foreclosure or eviction if the insured passes unexpectedly. The company also offers final expense, living benefits, and indexed universal life insurance products.

Freedom Equity Group

Freedom Equity Group, based in Arroyo Grande, California, is an independent marketing organization (IMO) that contracts with insurance companies to promote and distribute a range of life insurance products. 

Freedom Equity Group focuses on selling life insurance and annuities. Its main product is indexed universal life insurance, a form of permanent coverage that provides a cash value in addition to life insurance.

Summary

Thank you for reading this article on answering whether or not Primerica is a scam, pyramid scheme, or multi-level marketing organization.

I hope you learned some important lessons on how the company operates, and what other agents think about it, so that you can decide if Primerica career is a good long-term decision for you.

Keep doing your due diligence. I think my article is really just the start. 

If there’s anything I can do to help, please reach out to me here. 

If you’d like to learn more about how my insurance agency works and how I focus on taking agents and helping them become top producers, go here for an overview of how all my sales and marketing systems work, and how they can help you. 

Also, check out my many Agent Success Stories and my highly-reviewed insurance sales books.