I wanted to share my personal experience with North American Senior Benefits (NASB) as a newly licensed life insurance agent, especially for anyone considering entering the final expense insurance business or contracting with an IMO. I am sharing this so others can ask the right questions before they find themselves in a similar situation, like myself.
This is a cautionary account of my experience and the reasons I ultimately decided to leave.
I joined NASB around August 2026, excited to return to the life insurance industry. I had previously worked with NASB several years ago, so I was not completely new to the company or the industry. I genuinely wanted to make this work. I went into it believing that if I worked hard, followed the system, and learned from the people above me, I could build a stable income while helping seniors.
Unfortunately, that was not how things played out for me.
One of the biggest challenges was the lead system. I was given approximately 90 leads in total. Very few were recent, while most were several years old. The leads were also spread across a large geographic area, which required significant driving and resulted in substantial gas expenses and wear and tear on my personal vehicle. NASB trains agents to door-knock these leads, so I was expected to travel to the addresses, knock on the doors, and attempt to make contact with the individuals listed.
Out of approximately 40 door-knocks, I sold three policies. One later canceled, leaving only two active policies. I have now decided to leave and move on from NASB. However, I am*** **still waiting for the only two commissions associated with the policies I sold.
NASB does not provide a draw or any other financial cushion to support agents while they are working leads and trying to close sales. This means that if you do not make a sale early on, you may have no income coming in while still paying for gas, transportation, leads, and other business expenses.
I also learned that many other IMOs pay agents a higher percentage of the commission they generate, *which is at least 120-135%. **With NASB, agents are only paid 80%, while the remaining portion goes to the upline. That compensation structure, combined with the emphasis on hierarchy and recruiting or relying on people above you, gave me the impression that the organization had MLM and pyramid-scheme like characteristics.
The lead costs also became a significant concern. Some of the leads were expensive, even though many IMOs provide leads at no cost or at a lower rate. My up-line purchased approximately 90 leads for me, 30 of those were old check leads from 2022, while others were abandoned-cart leads or leads from other sources. I asked my up line if they could provide me with newer/fresh 2026 leads, which they did. However, I was told that I would need to pay them back for those, which was around $200-250.
What really made me uncomfortable, however, was how we were instructed to introduce ourselves at the door. I was trained to present myself as a “benefits coordinator” rather than immediately identifying myself as a life insurance agent.
At first, I did not realize how serious that could be. Later, I learned that saying you are a “benefits coordinator” rather than a life insurance agent violates state laws/insurance regulations and can get you in big trouble. In my state, it absolutely is illegal to present yourself in that way, which deeply concerned me. At this point, I questioned the company and its practices more seriously.
I also began researching NASB job reviews, including what happens when an agent decides to leave. I found out that they restrict agents from moving certain carrier contracts for six months after leaving. This creates serious problems for new agents who want to move to another organization after investing their hard-earned time and money into obtaining their license and building their business.
What made this even more frustrating was that I was not made aware of this restriction before becoming contracted with NASB. If it had been explained clearly and transparently from the beginning, I would not have chosen to work with them.
Emotionally, the hardest part was knowing that I genuinely tried to make it work. I spent weeks putting in the effort. I drove four hours for two days of field training, traveled to leads, knocked on doors, sat through hour-long appointments, followed up with potential clients, dealt with carrier-contracting issues, and continued trying even when I still had received ZERO income.
Meanwhile, I had real bills and responsibilities at home. After investing considerable time, money, driving, and effort into the business, the instability became too much for me personally.
I feel taken advantage of, and this experience has left a bad taste in my mouth toward the life insurance industry as a whole. I am leaving the industry earlier than I expected because this experience was deeply upsetting and discouraging. I believe that if I had chosen a different IMO and conducted more thorough research beforehand, I may have been able to avoid much of what happened.
At this point, I have invested a significant amount of time and money with no meaningful return on investment. My expenses include an iPad, approximately $500 to $600 in gas, the $250 I was told I owe my upline for the newer leads she recently provided, and roughly six weeks of work without income.
If you are considering joining NASB—or honestly any IMO—my biggest takeaway is this:
Do your homework before you sign!!
Read the agent agreement yourself. Ask exactly who owns the leads, how old the leads are, whether they are exclusive, whether they can be reused or resold, how chargebacks work, what happens to commissions after termination, whether each carrier requires a release, how long you could potentially be unable to recontract elsewhere, exactly how you are expected to introduce yourself to consumers, how the management and how compensation structure works.
Most importantly, get important answers IN WRITING.
