In a recent “Brokers on MGAs” survey, brokers throughout the country ranked underwriting responsiveness and claims responsiveness as their top priorities in establishing and maintaining a relationship with their managing general agency.
“We spend a lot of time following up on terms and endorsements, and it would be nice to have an MGA communicating effectively so that we’re not left unsure of what is happening during the marketing process,” one respondent noted.
One MGA understands this concern, and feels that it is likely to become even more pressing as more millennials enter the industry.
“The way the times are changing, especially with young brokers coming into the industry, many brokers want to quote and issue a policy immediately, without having to wait a few days for it to come through,” said Matthew Taylor, general manager,
PAL Insurance Brokers Canada Ltd.
In order to meet this need, PAL has redesigned its website to better accommodate the growing imperative for speed and faster turnaround time. The customized website features almost all of PAL’s offerings, including niche products, all with no processing fees.
“Brokers have the ability to purchase specific programs online without referring to a PAL underwriter, as our website now allows brokers automatic turn around,” Taylor said. “The faster that brokers can type, the faster they will receive the policy documents back.” Even PAL’s programs which do not fit “within the box” and required to be looked at by a PAL underwriter receive much faster turnaround compared to a manual submission by fax, due to the online technology and correspondence.
Many respondents also expressed dissatisfaction with MGA’s underwriting responsiveness, with one believing that “They need better claims service and the ability to respond quickly.”
To combat this, PAL has implemented a portal that allows for quick communication with brokers, by including such features as email notifications that contain a link to the file in question and whatever message accompanies it.
“Going through this portal is ten times faster than a manual submission, and when the file needs referenced, we can quickly pull that information from it,” Taylor said. “We push through thousands policies per year, and we wouldn’t be growing so steadily as we are without the customized website that we’ve set up.”
In addition, the low policy premiums and streamlined timeframe means that it’s cost-efficient both for brokers and their clients, which has also been a key differentiator for the digital tool.
There are currently about 14,000 brokers who are registered on the PAL website, and PAL continually assesses their opinions on it. So far, the response has been almost entirely positive.
“Brokers just love it,” Taylor said. “Some may access it once a year, every week or almost everyday, but the feedback is that they couldn’t be happier with the fast service it offers.”
