Q: What can I do with non-standard insurance clients given my panel only seems to want vanilla customers?
A: Non-standard insurances are not easy to place; you cannot simply input the details to a comparison site questionnaire and get a competitive quote. It is for this reason that they are a key point of differentiation for advisers and a service that you are without doubt best placed to provide.
Clients will always have unique circumstances, such as a poor claims history, properties with subsidence issues or flood risks, high risk occupations, high contents sum to be insured or even expensive single items such as jewellery or paintings.
These needs are often not met by standard general insurance policies and certainly, despite claims to the contrary, it is unlikely that your clients would be able to obtain insurance to meet their needs via comparison sites and online-only panels. In fact, even a standard policy request can quickly become a struggle if, as is all too often the case, the client is unable to find a competitive quote online.
So what to do when ‘the computer says no’? Well the answer is simple, go back to basics and do what you did before online offerings became the norm. Clients who do not fit exactly the narrow parameters set by the online offerings for whatever reason will need a helping hand to find the right product, delivering the right level of cover at the right price and this requires a ‘true broker’ offering’.
Go ‘off-panel’, speak to your GI providers directly and broker the best deal. There is a solution out there for even the most complex of risks and by doing the leg work you will both add value to your customers and guarantee your future relationship with them.
If they can trust you with even the most sensitive of needs then they will trust you with the rest of their portfolio.
Additionally, the best GI providers will be able to support you through the process combining both their online distribution with the traditional approach to ensure you get the very best cover at a competitive premium.
For really tough cases, please don’t ever consider turning clients away and into the hands of your competitors. There is always the option to introduce your client to your GI provider and let them do all the work whilst you retain the relationship and still earn a valuable commission.
Non-standard need not be a struggle after all.
