Thursday, July 29, 2010

Definition of a Wholesale Insurance Broker

Retail insurance agents meet countless clients and prospective clients regularly. Even independently licensed agents are often unable to extend their resources beyond a small handful of preferred insurance carriers, often remaining unaware of unique or specialized products.

That's where wholesale insurance brokers come in. Since they do not deal directly with the general public, but rather with the retail agents, they have time to research more carriers and learn new niche products, which they can present to retail agents to help meet their clients' needs.

Transparency


When retail insurance agents exhaust their existing resources trying to locate policies to cover an unusual or unique client need, they contact wholesale brokers for assistance. The wholesale broker's client is the retail agent, not the end consumer, which allows the agent to maintain the rapport and relationship already established.

Expertise


Wholesale brokers focus their efforts on finding specialized insurance products from smaller and lesser-known carriers. The broker's expertise is an awareness of existing niche policies and specific coverage products not offered by general insurance companies.


When presented with a scenario where ordinary mainstream insurance products fail to meet coverage needs or with a prospect whose need is too complex or risky for traditional carriers, the wholesale broker's knowledge of specialized niche policies becomes invaluable to the retail agent.

Resources


Wholesale insurance brokers maintain extensive databases of unique products offered by specialty carriers, many of whom do not even provide other ordinary insurance services. This list of smaller, relatively unknown insurance companies becomes a powerful resource for the broker, as he is able to contact multiple providers of niche products to further obtain the best possible policy and price for the retail agent's client.

References


Wholesale Insurance & Brokerage Services: About Us
IRMI.com: Wholesale Broker Definition


Article originally published on eHow Money (07/29/2010)

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