Managing Lead Credits and Returns
Not every lead is a good one. When a provider sends a bad lead — wrong number, unreachable, not actually interested in insurance — most providers will credit or refund the cost. Managing these credits correctly keeps your ROI calculations accurate.
What Are Credits?
A credit or return is when a lead provider acknowledges a lead was bad and either refunds the cost or deducts it from the next invoice. Common reasons include wrong phone numbers, leads outside your licensed states, people who didn't actually request a quote, and duplicate leads.
Billable vs Non-Billable Leads
Every lead has a status that determines whether it counts toward your conversion rate and ROI. Understanding these statuses is key to accurate reporting:
- Billable — leads you paid for and that count toward your conversion-rate denominator. These are active, valid leads.
- Non-billable — leads excluded from ROI calculations entirely. These might be test leads, internal records, or leads flagged by the provider as non-chargeable.
- Returned — leads you've filed for credit. The return request is pending approval.
- Credited — leads where the provider approved the return. The cost is refunded and the lead is excluded from billable counts.
- Duplicate — leads automatically flagged as duplicates of an existing lead. Excluded from billable counts to prevent double-counting.
Why this matters. Your conversion rate formula is matched leads ÷ billable leads × 100. If returned or duplicate leads aren't marked properly, they inflate the denominator and make your conversion rate look worse than it actually is.
How Credits Affect Your Numbers
Credited leads are excluded from the billable-lead count. That means your conversion rate is calculated only on leads you actually paid for, giving you an accurate picture of ROI. Without properly tracking credits, your conversion rate would appear artificially lower than reality.
How Subsidy and Out-of-Pocket Cost Affect ROI
Some leads have a subsidy — a discount, co-op reimbursement, or carrier credit that reduces what you actually pay. AgencyIQ tracks three cost fields for each lead:
- Cost — what the provider originally charged
- Subsidy — any discount or reimbursement applied (carrier co-op, volume discount, promotional credit)
- Out-of-Pocket (OOP) Cost — automatically calculated as Cost minus Subsidy. This is the number used in all ROI, CPA, and total-spend calculations.
If you receive a partial credit or carrier subsidy on a lead, update the subsidy field on that lead in the Leads Log. The out-of-pocket cost recalculates automatically, and your ROI numbers reflect what you actually spent.
Recording Credits
When you upload lead files, make sure credited or returned leads are marked appropriately. Most provider export files have a status column that indicates credits. The system recognizes these and excludes them from billable calculations.
Tip. Always file for credits within your provider's time window (usually 5–10 business days). Every bad lead you don't credit inflates your CPA and deflates your conversion rate — making your ROI look worse than it actually is.
Don't forget. Review your leads weekly and file credit requests promptly. Most providers have a short window for credit claims. After that window closes, you're paying for bad leads with no recourse.
Last updated: 2026-04-22