What Is a Certified Personal Risk Manager (CPRM)? - SmartAsset

The Certified Personal Risk Manager (CPRM) program was created for professionals who offer insurance and risk management services to high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs). Candidates develop their risk management expertise, learn technical information about creating comprehensive risk management and insurance programs, and cultivate the necessary skills to acquire and manage client accounts. Let’s break down what you need to know about this certificate.

A financial advisor can help you gauge a comfortable level of risk for your investments and create an investment portfolio for your financial goals.

CPRM Program Background

The CPRM program is overseen by the National Alliance for Insurance Education and Research, a for-profit professional training organization that was founded in 1969. The certificate was created in 2014, and candidates include insurance agents and brokers and other employees of insurance companies who service wealthy individuals. The National Alliance also sponsors several other insurance-related designations, including the certified risk manager (CRM).

CPRM Certification Requirements

The CPRM curriculum includes five courses. Each class covers a specific topic related to insurance protection for HNWIs. The five topics include personal client risk management, understanding coverage differences indicated for affluent clients, how to protect HNWI clients’ lifestyles, practical risk management and delivering successful sales presentations.

The course material is specifically tailored to serve risk mitigation needs of HNWI clients. For example, the class on protecting clients’ lifestyles includes lessons on insuring boats and aircraft, domestic servants, risks of kidnapping for ransom and business ownership.

The courses can be delivered through live, instructor-led webinars or via in-person classroom instruction. Face-to-face classroom sessions are, however, temporarily being postponed until the pandemic subsides. Each of the five courses requires 16 hours of instruction. The webinars are delivered over two to four weeks, while the classroom instruction takes two days for each course.

Applicants for the CPRM also have to pass proctored, closed-book final exams after completing each course. There is no overall final exam. When all five classes and class exams have been taken, the education component is complete.

Each class costs $525, so the total cost for the five required classes is $2,625. The time to complete the entire set of classes varies, but applicants have five years from the time of taking the first class to complete the series.

CPRM holders have to keep their education and certification current by taking one additional class from the alliance each year. Depending on the class, the CPRM holder may be exempt from paying the annual dues to be a member of the alliance.

The CPRM is an entry-level financial professional certification with no prerequisites. Anyone can acquire one by taking the required courses and passing the final exam. It doesn’t give holders any specific powers or privileges.

Comparable Certifications

The insurance industry has a proliferation of certificates and designations, including a few that are appropriate for beginning agents and others in the insurance field. They include:

Life underwriter training council fellow (LUTCF) is a designation offered by the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA). Earning one requires passing three courses, each eight weeks long and followed by a course-specific exam. The training costs a total of $2,850.
Chartered insurance counselor (CIC) is another designation from the National Alliance for Insurance Education and Research. It requires passing five courses, including four that are specific to the CIC designation and an additional course from the alliance’s curricula for either the CPRM or the certified risk manager designation. The total cost is approximately $2,500.
Financial services certified professional (FSCP) is a general insurance certification offered by the American College of Financial Services. It requires passing seven courses on financial services and ethics and costs $3,230.

The Bottom Line

An advisor with a CPRM is focused on the insurance needs of affluent people. Earning one requires passing five courses that include material specific to the concerns of wealthy individuals, including protection from kidnapping, insuring boats and aircraft and risks associated with employing domestic servants. Since the National Alliance for Insurance Education and Research offers both the CPRM and the CIC, and one CPRM course is allowed to count toward the CIC requirements, it may make sense for financial advisors to pursue both accreditations at the same time.

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