How we get paid
For the services that we provide, we primarily receive commissions paid by insurance companies or other insurance intermediaries. Our compensation is generally included in your insurance premium. Where agreed in advance, we may also be compensated by specific service fees paid by clients or third parties.
Commission – Commission is normally calculated as a percentage of the premium paid to the insurer. The insurer pays us the commission amount for the services that we provide to you. Our commission is included in the premium that you pay.
Fees Paid by Clients
- Fees in lieu of commission – On occasion, insurance carriers and intermediaries may not provide commission on a transaction. In those instances, we will apply a fee for securing coverage on your behalf. All fees are clearly disclosed separately from your premium.
- Fees for complex transactions – On occasion, with more complex business insurance programs requiring additional resources, products or services, a fee may be negotiated for additional services. Fees charged will be outlined in a proposal and approved by the client in advance
Contingency Amounts – Contingent commissions are typically based on the total premium volume placed with an insurer with payment to the broker contingent on a predefined ratio of claims paid to premium volume. Some insurers may include eligibility criteria such as premium growth or retention. Not all markets include contingent commissions. It is important to note that contingent commissions are not paid at the account or policy level.
Other Compensation and Benefits – We may receive compensation or other monetary benefits from insurers in other ways, including participation in promotions, sales incentives to individual brokers such as nominal gift cards, financial support for marketing or employee training, interest paid to us by financial institutions earned on fiduciary or trust accounts in which we hold your premium payments until they are sent to the insurance company, and fees paid to us for additional services that we provide such as claims adjudication.
