Brent Winans, CPCU, ARM

Mr. Winans writes on insurance agent errors and omissions for IRMI.com.

Mr. Winans is vice president of Clear Advantage Risk Management in Delray Beach, Florida. He provides fee-based (no insurance sales) risk management consulting services to larger clients, provides technical support and training for insurance agents, and serves as an expert witness on both sides of agent errors and omissions (E&O) cases across the country.

His opinions are informed by his extensive brokerage, insurance coverage, and risk management experience. During his career, Mr. Winans has served as the following.

• State Farm insurance agent
• Independent insurance broker
• Insurance brokerage office manager
• Self-insurance pool manager
• Risk management consultant
• Director of risk management for an international company at which he managed the insurance programs of 35 affiliated companies on 5 continents, including the Colorado Rockies Baseball Team, diverse mining operations, and the world's largest broker of nuclear fuel. In that capacity, he oversaw the work of 11 insurance brokerage firms handling the accounts on an international basis.
• Liaison for the National Council on Compensation Insurance to the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America and the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents.

Mr. Winans's articles have appeared in several publications, including Business Insurance, Commercial Leasing Law and Strategy, IRMI's The Risk Report, IRMI Insight, and Risk Management Magazine. He teaches continuing legal education classes for attorneys on agent E&O issues and is approved by the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America and Swiss Re to teach their E&O loss prevention course to agents.

He received his bachelor's degree from Lincoln Christian University. He is licensed as a general lines insurance agent in Florida and as a nonresident producer in New Jersey. Mr. Winans holds the Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter and Associate in Risk Management designations. He is a member of the American Association of Insurance Management Consultants, the Risk and Insurance Management Society, the Professional Liability Defense Federation, the Professional Liability Underwriting Society, and the Society of Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriters. He is also a fellow and board member of the Windstorm Insurance Network.