The April wave
Sales resignations tend to arrive in April and May, after March incentives are paid. Treat it as a season. Before March, list the agent teams, partner branches and client accounts held by each seller, and name a backup for each one. When resignations arrive, the backup takes over at once instead of after a search. Exit reasons recorded in a structured way show whether people leave for pay, targets or managers, which is the starting point for next year's retention plan.
Handing over agents, branches and accounts
An agency manager's agents need a new manager who meets them within the notice period, or they drift to another insurer. A bancassurance officer's successor needs an introduction to the partner bank's branch manager. A broking account manager's corporate clients need a joint call before their renewal dates. Write these into the exit checklist as named handovers with dates, not as a general line asking the employee to hand over work.
- Agent team reassigned, with joint meetings before the last day
- Successor introduced to the partner bank's branch manager
- Corporate renewals handed over through a joint client call
- Partner bank ID card and system access returned
- Customer data removed from laptops and phones
Incentives in the final settlement
Disputes at exit are usually about incentives, so write the rule into the incentive policy: for example, incentive is paid on premium issued and not cancelled by the last working day, and nothing is paid on proposals still pending. Take an employee with a monthly gross of ₹36,000 who leaves after 12 days of a 30-day month. Salary for those days is ₹14,400. Add 8 days of earned leave encashed at basic of ₹18,000 / 30, which is ₹4,800, and a final incentive of ₹6,500. The settlement comes to ₹25,700 before any deductions.
Timelines and gratuity
The law gives two working days, whatever the reason for leaving, to pay wages due on exit, so clearance has to run during the notice period. Staff with five or more years of continuous service also receive gratuity, worked out as 15 days' wages for every completed year on the last drawn wages. Fixed-term staff, such as those hired for a crop insurance season or a system migration, get gratuity pro rata without the five-year minimum.
How to set it up in ZeniaHR
- Enter the resignation as soon as it is received, which fixes the last working day and shows the employee as on notice.
- Set notice days by grade in the work terms policy, with longer notice for agency, bancassurance and account managers who hold relationships.
- Track agent, branch and account handovers on the 8-item exit checklist, and tag the exit with the closest of the 20 structured reasons.
- Add the final incentive and leave encashment as inputs to an off-cycle run, so the money reaches the employee within two working days of exit.
- Check the gratuity and settlement reports for staff with five or more years of service, and for fixed-term staff on a pro rata basis.
- After the April wave, review exit reasons to see whether sellers are leaving for pay, targets or managers.
Read more about employee records and exits in ZeniaHR.
Roles this applies to
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Is incentive paid after an insurance employee resigns?
It depends on the written incentive policy. A common rule pays incentive on premium issued and not cancelled by the last working day, and nothing on proposals still pending. Put the rule in writing before year-end, so the settlement is a calculation rather than a negotiation.
How are agents handled when an agency manager leaves?
The agents are reassigned to another agency manager, ideally named in advance, who meets them before the outgoing manager's last day. Agents are not employees, so the reassignment happens in the distribution system, while HR tracks the handover as an item on the exit checklist.
Do fixed-term insurance staff get gratuity?
Yes. A fixed-term employee earns gratuity pro rata and does not need the five years of service that others must complete. A fixed-term worker also holds full employee status, so treat their leave, wages and final settlement on the same footing as permanent staff.