If you’re not getting the premium reductions your’e looking for, shop around and check out low-cost brokers.
When thinking about top-tier insurance brokers for corporates the usual suspects come to mind: Hub International, Marsh & McLennan Cos., Willis Towers Watson, Aon PLC and the like. But after a quick look beyond that upper slot, one comes across unfamiliar names. Take for instance a broker called Oswald Companies.
- Not a well-recognized insurance broker among treasurers attending a recent NeuGroup meeting, the Cleveland-based Oswald actually has a long track record, since 1893, that stems from its high quality, low cost services.
Request denied. At least that’s what one treasurer told peers, noting his company’s existing market-leading broker had declined to reduce premiums by the requested 20%. Even with revenues of nearly $4.5 billion in 2019, “We felt we were not a big enough client, either inside or outside the US” to get the proper respect and that 20% reduction, the treasurer said.
That prompted a search beyond the biggest names. “We went with Oswald, a tier 2 broker that has alliances overseas that its customers can access and is hungry for business. They cut our premiums by almost $2 million,” the member said, to the audible gasps of fellow treasurers. “Almost 40% in one year.”
In return, Oswald received a base fee and a percentage of premium savings.
Coverage quality still good. Asked if coverage quality suffered, the member said the level of coverage remained largely the same, as did the carrier group—Chubb Limited, Aegon N.V., etc. “And they were able to come to us and say, ‘Here’s the data you’ll need, here’s how to put it together, and this is what the insurance companies are looking for,” he said, adding, “They did a lot of heavy lifting.”
Related risk management. The member also noted Oswald’s ancillary risk management services, such as implementing driver monitor and safety programs for auto-insurance policies related to the company’s transportation needs.
Fast. The member said his treasury group moved quickly to replace its current policies, and Oswald kept pace, replacing policies “within a quarter.”
Go long. One member asked if peers recently renewing their property and casualty policies had done so annually or for multiple years, and the consensus was a combination, although today’s rising premium environment favors longer rather than shorter. A couple of members said their brokers had locked them into two-year contracts that had worked out well. “Insurers have been hit very hard recently,” noted one. “The industry is saying we need to make money on these products.”
