General Insurance Applications (GIA) study plan
General Insurance Applications (GIA) · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 6 hours per week
Insurance Principles and Risk Management Fundamentals
Define risk, peril, hazard, and loss in your own words and classify ten realistic scenarios by each term
Distinguish insurable from non-insurable risks using the tests of insurable risk (fortuity, measurable loss, large number of similar exposure units, no catastrophic concentration)
Explain indemnity, insurable interest, utmost good faith, subrogation, and contribution, and match each principle to a scenario where it changes the outcome
Diagram the risk management process from exposure identification through treatment selection and monitoring
Your checkpoint
A one-page terminology and principles reference sheet plus ten solved classification scenarios scored at 8/10 or better
Insurance Principles and Risk Management Fundamentals
Compare avoidance, retention, transfer, and loss reduction/control, and justify a treatment recommendation for five small-business exposures
Compute simple loss frequency and severity figures and explain how each drives retention versus transfer decisions
Describe how pooling and the law of large numbers support premium adequacy and insurer solvency
Identify the roles of reinsurance and co-insurance in spreading and sharing risk
Your checkpoint
A written risk treatment memo covering five exposures with a recommended treatment, supporting rationale, and frequency/severity calculations
Personal Lines Insurance Coverages
Map the standard homeowners policy structure, including Section I property coverages, Section II liability coverages, and the conditions that modify them
Apply coverage limits, deductibles, and special limits to five claim scenarios and state the payable amount for each
Differentiate named-peril from open-peril (all-risk) forms and list common exclusions and endorsements
Explain personal auto coverage parts (liability, medical payments, uninsured/underinsured motorist, physical damage) and how they interact
Your checkpoint
A claim-calculation worksheet with five homeowners and auto scenarios, each showing coverage triggered, limit applied, deductible, and net payment
Personal Lines Insurance Coverages
Compare personal umbrella, flood, and dwelling fire coverage features and identify gaps they fill in a personal lines program
Analyze how life and health basics (beneficiary designations, coordination of benefits, disability income) fit a household's protection plan
Evaluate underwriting and eligibility factors that affect personal lines pricing and acceptance
Resolve ten mixed personal lines multiple-choice items under timed conditions and review every error
Your checkpoint
A timed 25-question personal lines practice set completed at 80% or higher, with a written error log for every missed item
Commercial Lines Insurance Coverages
Distinguish commercial property forms, including building and personal property, business income, and extra expense, and explain the business income period of restoration
Compare commercial general liability occurrence and claims-made triggers and explain each coverage part (A, B, C) and the aggregate limits
Explain workers compensation statutory benefits, employer's liability, and the exclusive remedy concept
Identify the purpose of commercial auto, inland marine, and crime coverages in a business insurance program
Your checkpoint
A commercial coverage comparison matrix covering property, general liability, workers compensation, auto, inland marine, and crime, with trigger, key limit, and typical exclusion noted for each
Commercial Lines Insurance Coverages
Apply business income and extra expense calculations to a scenario involving a covered shutdown and state the recovery amount
Interpret common CGL exclusions and endorsements and predict whether a described loss is covered
Explain how commercial package policies and businessowners policies combine coverages and where they leave gaps
Recommend a coverage program for a described small business and justify each recommended line
Your checkpoint
A written coverage recommendation for one hypothetical business, including business income calculation, CGL analysis, and a list of recommended endorsements
Insurance Operations, Regulation, and Ethics
Trace the insurance regulatory framework, including state regulation, the role of the NAIC model laws, and producer licensing requirements
Explain producer duties, fiduciary handling of premiums, and the consequences of misrepresentation, rebating, and commingling
Apply a step-by-step ethical decision framework to four realistic producer dilemmas and defend each conclusion
Describe insurer financial solvency safeguards, including reserves, surplus, and guaranty associations
Your checkpoint
Four written ethics case analyses using a consistent decision framework, each ending with a defensible action and the rule or duty that supports it
Insurance Principles and Risk Management Fundamentals & Personal Lines Insurance Coverages & Commercial Lines Insurance Coverages & Insurance Operations, Regulation, and Ethics
Complete two full-length timed practice exams under test-day conditions and record domain-level scores
Re-teach your three weakest objectives using your own notes and reference sheets
Build a final one-page formula and concept sheet covering limits, deductibles, coinsurance, and business income
Review every missed item across all domains and confirm the underlying concept is now understood
Your checkpoint
Two completed timed practice exams with domain score breakdowns and a final review sheet showing improvement in each previously weak domain
Milestones
Week 2: Score 80% or higher on a self-made 20-question principles and risk management quiz, and correctly classify all ten scenarios from week 1 without notes
Week 4: Complete the timed 25-question personal lines set at 80% or higher and show a written error log with a corrected explanation for each missed item
Week 6: Produce the commercial coverage matrix and business income calculation with no unresolved gaps, and pass a 20-question commercial lines self-quiz at 80% or higher
Week 7: Complete all four ethics case analyses and correctly identify the governing duty or regulation in each without referencing notes
Week 8: Achieve 75% or higher on both full-length timed practice exams with no domain below 65%, and show measurable improvement over the week 4 and week 6 checkpoints