Factors to Consider When Choosing an Insurance Agent for Your Business
Posted on Apr 29, 2020
Your business is your baby. You’ve labored hard to bring it into the world, and you don’t want to trust it to just anyone, especially when it comes to someone as important as your insurance agent.
It’s essential to take the time to choose your business insurance agent carefully and with great deliberation. These are just a few of the important factors you need to know when you select an insurance agent for your business.
1. Is the Agent an Independent Agent or Affiliated with a Single Company?
Independent insurance agents have greater leverage to use for your benefit. Because they aren’t affiliated with one single insurance provider, they can go to bat for you with a broad spectrum of insurers.
This means they can create truly customizable insurance products for your unique business needs, while also ensuring you get the best possible value for your insurance dollars. Corporate agents that work with a single insurance provider are limited to the products and rates that insurer provides, which may end up costing you more for less coverage and protection.
2. Does the Agent Live in Your Community?
This matters more than you may realize. Only someone who lives in your community can truly understand the unique challenges you face related to the neighborhood where you live, the geography, growth of the area, and natural disasters you may be vulnerable to because of where your business is located.
Plus, there is something about knowing you can run into someone at the grocery store and look them eye to eye that instills confidence that they aren’t going to knowingly lead you down the wrong path for your business insurance needs.
3. Does the Agent Make Time for You?
Your business insurance is no small thing. You want to know that the insurance agent you choose for your business has time to answer your questions now. If they don’t return your calls or emails quickly when you’re considering purchasing insurance from their agency, how can you expect them to answer your calls and emails when you need to file a claim?
As a business owner, you hope you never need to file a claim, but know somewhere down the road you may have to. You want to feel confident that your agent will be there for you should that day arrive.
4. Does the Agent Measure Up?
There are many indicators you can use to help you identify insurance agents that will ultimately measure up to your highest standards. This includes things like verifying that the agent is licensed in your state, asking about credentials the agent has earned (and what they mean for you as a customer), and checking to see if there have been any complaints filed against the agent in the past.
Don’t forget to look into the agency where the agent is employed as well. You want to make sure that all are above board before allowing them to help you manage the insurance risks your business faces.
5. Does the Agent Have the Required Knowledge?
Ask questions and expect to get answers from your agent in a timely manner. It’s one thing if the agent needs to look up specific information about numbers and costs. It’s something else entirely if the agent has to look up answers for every single question you may have.
Your insurance agent should understand the types of insurance you need for your business, special concerns your business may face, and even steps you can take to help mitigate your risks and your insurance costs. If the agent is unable to do these things, perhaps this agent is not the right choice for your business.
Is an Otterstedt Insurance Agent Right for You?
At Otterstedt Insurance Agency, we’ve been industry leaders, carving a path for New Jersey businesses and beyond to get the insurance protection they need for more than a century.
Today we continue to lead by employing independent agents who live in the community and understand your concerns, your needs, and your interests when it comes to insurance coverage suitable to weather many storms.
Our agents are highly trained to meet our rigorous standards, as well as the standards you bring to the table with you.
