Google Local Services Ads for insurance agents

Google Local Services Ads are open to insurance agencies in California and Florida only. If your office is in one of those states, they are worth testing, because you pay per lead rather than per click. Everywhere else, the same searches are reached with a Search campaign and a well-kept Google Business Profile.

Key facts

• Google lists "Insurance agency" as a US category for California and Florida only (Getting started with Local Services Ads).
• One Google Verified badge replaced Google Guaranteed, Google Screened and License Verified by Google on October 20, 2025 (Search Engine Roundtable).
• You are charged per valid lead, and a missed call counts if the caller stays on the line for more than 20 seconds during business hours (How leads work).
• Google says verification takes 3 to 4 weeks on average after you submit documents (verification requirements).

Which states can run Local Services Ads for insurance?

Only California and Florida. Google's US category list includes "Insurance agency (California and Florida only)," and no other insurance category appears on it. The list changes from time to time, so check Google's eligibility tool before you plan around it.

Being in an eligible state is not the same as being approved. Your agency still has to pass Google's screening, and Google decides which checks apply to your business.

What does Google Verified check for an insurance agency?

It checks that your business is registered, licensed and run by the people it says. Google's requirements page lists these checks for the insurance agency category:

"Select users" means Google decides case by case whether a check applies to you. For the registration step, Google accepts a Dun and Bradstreet (D-U-N-S) number, a Secretary of State registration or an Employer Identification Number (EIN), according to its screening process page. A certificate of insurance must stay valid for at least 14 days after you submit it.

The person doing the checks must be an owner or manager of your Google Business Profile. Google says background checks are free to the business. After a failed background check, you wait 30 days to reapply, and 180 days after a second denial.

What changed when Google Verified replaced Google Screened?

The badge name changed, and the money-back guarantee ended. Google announced one Google Verified badge for every advertiser in August 2025, and it took effect on October 20, 2025. Advertisers who had already passed verification received the new badge without doing anything.

Google's badge page says the Money Back Guarantee was discontinued. Only services booked before December 7, 2025 stayed eligible. Google also says verified profiles now show which checks the business passed, and that the badge change does not affect ad ranking.

How does pay per lead work?

You pay when someone contacts you through the ad, not when they see or click it. Google charges for these kinds of contact:

• Answered calls.
• Missed calls during business hours, when the caller stays on the line for more than 20 seconds.
• Text messages, emails and voicemails.
• Booking requests, in the US and Canada.

Repeat contact from the same phone number or email within 15 days is not charged again. You set an average weekly budget and the most you are willing to pay per lead. Your monthly spend can't go over the weekly budget times the average number of weeks in a month.

Google publishes no price list. It says lead prices vary by location, job type, lead type and bidding mode, and that message leads are usually cheaper than calls. Figures you see on agency blogs don't cite a source, so get a quote for your own area during setup.

Check this before you count on refunds: Google credits some low-quality leads automatically and may credit leads you report in its feedback survey. It does not promise a credit for every bad lead (How leads work).

What decides where your agency ranks?

An auction, weighted by how good and how responsive your profile is. Google's ad rankings page names these factors:

1. Your bid per lead
2. How likely your ad is to produce a lead
3. How fast you respond to calls and messages
4. The searcher's location and the time of the search
5. How relevant your business is to the search
6. Your rating, number of reviews and average response time
7. The verification checks you have completed

Responsiveness matters most for a small office. Google warns that missing calls regularly can lower your ranking. Reviews count too, so a steady review routine helps both your ads and your map listing.

What should agents outside California and Florida do instead?

Run a Search campaign and keep your Google Business Profile complete. A Search campaign shows your ad to people searching phrases you choose, such as "home insurance agent near me," in the area you set. You pay per click instead of per lead, so tracking calls and forms is what tells you the cost of each inquiry.

Your Business Profile is free and shows in Google Maps and the local results. It has no ad budget, but reviews, categories and hours decide how often it appears. Our Business Profile guide covers setup, and the insurance keyword guide covers what to bid on.

Agencies in California and Florida can run both. The two serve different spots on the results page, and the Search campaign lets you send people to a page built for one product.

Our Google Ads management sets up Search campaigns with call tracking and a landing page, for 10% of total monthly ad spend.

How do you judge whether the leads are worth it?

Compare the cost per sale, not the cost per lead. Log every lead the ads produce, mark which ones you quoted and which you sold, and divide the spend by the sales. Calls and messages arrive on your phone, so someone has to answer them live. Our guide to calls or forms covers how to handle a channel that rings your phone.

If you want help deciding between Local Services Ads and a Search campaign for your state, book a Google Ads strategy call.