There’s no doubt that you or your business are capable of sourcing an insurance policy that fulfils your insurance needs. However, there are multifarious benefits of allowing the experience of an insurance brokerage do all of the hard work for you, especially if you ever need to make a claim.
Not sure if going through a brokerage is for you? Here’s five reasons to help you understand if a brokerage will assist your insurance needs.
Five reasons to help you understand if a brokerage is suitable for you.
1. Expert advice will find the right policy for your needs
As a brokerage with years of expertise, we know exactly what type of policy you need. Apart from sourcing the right policy, and getting the most appropriate policy for the client, a brokerage makes sure the policy wording is right for you. We know which insurance policies are good and which ones aren’t. For example, some motor vehicle policies exclude cars over 3 and a half tonnes. Some policies have radius limits as to how far you can drive them, and how far you can’t. It’s our job to know what the policy wording says so that we can advise you to make the right decision.
It’s no good getting an insurance policy that doesn’t cover the right things, which is why we’re here to make sure that you don’t get caught out.
2. Legally, brokerages have to work in the best interest of the client
Legally, as a brokerage we have to work in the best interest of the client. This is in contrast to when you deal with the insurance company directly, as the employee of that insurance company does not have the same obligations legally. We are always on the clients side and acting in your best interest.
We’ll fight for you every step of the way!
3. Insurance companies speak their own language
We speak the same language that the insurance company speaks. Not everyone knows how to phrase things in an ‘insurance state’, which can be pretty intimidating when dealing with insurance companies directly.
Miscommunication can often occur and this can create a lot of stress for the client, making the process a lot more complicated than it needs to be. As qualified insurance specialists we know how to communicate effectively with the big insurance companies, so that you don’t need to be burdened by the situation.
4. It’s all about the interpretation of the policy wording
Understanding what the policy says is the key to claims. It all comes down to your interpretation of the policy wording.
What some people may not realise is that not everything is insured within a specific circumstance. There are only a number of things that are insured by a policy.
When it comes to the policy wording, there are expectations on both sides of a policy between the insurer and policy holder. Most of the time the insurer knows exactly what they are insuring, but the client doesn’t often know in what circumstances their property or stock is covered. They just assume that they are always ‘covered’.
Understanding the insurance policy gives the end user the right expectation on how the policy will and won’t respond to an extent. As an insurance brokerage, we can help you figure out what you are insured for and in what scenario it is applicable.
5. When an insurance company won’t respond to your policy, we know the right questions to ask
There often times that claims are rejected.
This occurs when the person at the desk has received information from the person on the ground, stating that the policy won’t respond, as the circumstances are excluded by the policy wording.
When individuals and businesses are battling this on their own, you don’t know what to ask, and as a result you can feel very overwhelmed. Getting legal advice will cost thousands, so you tend to fall in line and come to terms with their decision.
We had this happen to a friend of one of our clients. The individual felt they had to believe that they weren’t insured for an incident, when in reality she was.
They came to us for advice, and we were able to tell them that the insurance company was quoting a clause of the report from the consultant, and we asked to have a look at the whole report. When that was provided by the insurance company, we saw that the consultant had advised that there were some circumstances that would allow the policy to respond to the claim. We advised the client to point those clauses out in the report, and ask the insurance company why they were putting no weight on that advice.
The end result? She got her $120,000 back. It’s all a matter of knowing what to ask, with a fresh set of eyes.
Think it’s a wise idea to get the experience of an insurance broker on your side? Contact us today, we exist to benefit others, just like you!
We develop relationships, understand unique risk, and address your needs first. Let us help you get it right the first time.