You do not need to be an expert in insurance to speak to a broker. Just as you would engage a solicitor without a law degree, a broker’s job is to ask the right questions, clarify your options, and help you understand what you are buying.
Whether you run a business, lead a charity or manage a professional practice, the goal is the same: to make informed decisions about the risks that could interrupt your work. The following guide explains how to get the most from a broker relationship - from the first conversation through to renewal and beyond.
1. What a broker does differently
Going direct means discussing an insurer’s own products with that insurer. That can work well for straightforward needs. A broker offers something different: they understand your organisation, present it to insurers, compare the available options, and - where advice is provided - explain why a particular policy suits your needs.
Depending on the agreed service, a broker may also negotiate terms, arrange mid-term changes and support you through claims. Not every broker searches the whole market: some use a panel, specialist schemes or a single insurer for certain products. Ask what they can access and whose interests they represent at each stage, including any arrangements under which they act for an insurer.
The value is not simply having someone collect quotes. It is having someone who helps you understand the differences between them.
Related: Practical steps every small organisation should take to build resilience
2. Make a fair - not perfect - presentation of your risk
A first conversation should establish who you are, what you do, and what you are concerned about. You do not need a polished presentation or a complete understanding of insurance before picking up the phone. What matters is a clear, honest account of your organisation: what it does, how it operates, and where things could go wrong.
The aim is not to make the risk look better than it is, but to help the broker and insurer understand it accurately. Mention the precautions you take - but also flag activities, incidents or uncertainties that do not fit neatly into a standard form.
Start with a short description of your work, supported by current policy documents, relevant financial figures, and details of any claims or incidents. Check information carried forward from previous years rather than assuming it is still accurate. If a figure is an estimate, say so. If an answer is missing, agree when you will provide it.
For UK non-consumer insurance, “fair presentation” has a legal meaning. The Insurance Act 2015 requires disclosure of every material circumstance you know or ought to know - or, failing that, enough information to put a prudent insurer on notice that further enquiries are needed. Material statements of fact must be substantially correct; statements of expectation or belief must be made in good faith.
A useful presentation makes the important points easy to find. Provide a concise summary, explain unusual features, and use supporting documents to add detail rather than burying the essentials in a large bundle. Review the information with your broker before it goes to insurers, and resolve any discrepancies.
What slows things down: last-minute approaches, missing policy documents, conflicting figures, and answers copied from old proposals without checking. Label estimates, explain anything uncertain, and agree who will supply missing information - and by when.
3. Describe what actually happens in your organisation
A label such as “consultancy”, “community charity” or “building contractor” is a starting point, not a complete description. Explain what you deliver, for whom, where and how.
When speaking to your broker, be ready to cover:
Activities - each service or income stream, including occasional work, subcontracted activities and plans for the coming year
Contracts - insurance requirements, liability clauses, unusual commitments and overseas customers or work. Ask the broker to review the insurance implications before you sign anything
Turnover or income - the latest figures and a realistic forecast, with a breakdown by activity or territory where relevant. Explain major changes rather than providing a single unexplained total
People - employees, partners, directors, trustees, volunteers and contractors. Include payroll information where requested and explain what people actually do
Premises and assets - locations, equipment, stock and dependencies on particular buildings, suppliers or systems. Ask what valuation basis the policy requires rather than assuming an accounts figure is suitable
Unusual risks - work at height, specialist equipment, valuable data, overseas operations or anything outside your usual activities. Explain the controls you use as well as the exposure
Using a broker does not remove your organisation’s responsibilities under the duty of fair presentation. Involve the people who know your finances, operations and claims history, then check the presentation before it goes to insurers.
Related: Our approach to Cyber Liability Insurance
4. Ask how the relationship will work
A useful first meeting should leave you clear about the service - not just the paperwork. Before you commit, ask:
What experience do you have with organisations like ours?
Will you give us a recommendation, or information so that we can choose for ourselves?
Which insurers will you consider, and are there restrictions on your search?
How are you paid - commission, fees or both - and what other charges could arise?
Who will look after us day to day, and who covers their absence?
What help will you provide if we have a claim, including outside office hours?
When will renewal work start, and what do you need from us?
What is included in the service, what costs extra, and how do we raise a complaint?
Ask for the service terms and charges in writing. Commercial customers can request disclosure of the commission a broker receives in connection with their policy. Check the firm’s regulatory status and contact details on the FCA Financial Services Register; if the broker is an appointed representative, check its principal and the scope of the arrangement.
5. Read the quotation and recommendation beyond the premium
The cheapest quote and the best fit are not necessarily the same. A useful recommendation should connect the proposed cover to your activities and priorities, explain significant limitations, and identify needs that remain uninsured.
Ask: “Why this option, what alternatives did you consider, and what would we be giving up by paying less?”
Then work through the points that determine how the policy would actually respond:
Who and what is insured - check the legal entities, activities, locations and territories, not just the trading name on the front page
Limits and excesses - the maximum payable, any lower limits for particular losses, and what you must contribute. Is a limit available per claim, or shared across the policy year?
Exclusions and conditions - what is not covered, and what you must do to keep the policy valid (such as maintaining specified security or following a notification procedure)
Valuations and recovery time - whether sums insured are adequate and whether business interruption cover allows enough time to recover. Specialist valuation advice may be needed
Professional indemnity continuity - how the policy treats earlier work, when claims or circumstances must be notified, and what happens if you change insurers or stop practising
The full cost - premium, applicable tax, broker fees and the total cost of any instalment finance, not just the monthly payment
Use a realistic example to test your understanding: “If a fire stopped us using our main premises, what would happen?” or “If a client alleged our advice caused a loss, what would we need to do?” Ask for important explanations in writing, and obtain written confirmation of when cover starts and any outstanding requirements.
Get in touch to understand your cover
6. Keep the conversation going - not just at renewal
Renewal should be a review point, not the only time you speak. Contact your broker before:
Introducing a new service or product line
Signing a contract with unfamiliar insurance requirements
Moving premises or buying significant equipment
Expanding overseas or taking on new types of client
Significant changes in income, staffing, ownership or working arrangements
Ask at the outset which changes your policies require you to report, and how quickly. A general annual update is not a substitute for a specific mid-term notification.
If an incident, complaint or allegation might lead to a claim, contact your broker promptly and follow the policy’s notification instructions. Do not wait for a formal demand or assume a small matter cannot develop. A phone call starts the conversation - but check whether formal written notification to the insurer is also required, and obtain confirmation that it has been made.
7. Build a relationship, not just a transaction
Over time, your broker should develop a clearer understanding of your organisation while continuing to test their own assumptions. You should have an agreed renewal timetable, a reliable point of contact, and a record of important decisions - including any gaps you knowingly accept.
Reviews should consider changes in your work, contracts and claims experience, not simply repeat last year’s answers. For a charity, that might mean revisiting cover as a new programme develops. For a professional practice, discussing a change in the type of work accepted. For a business, considering how growth has changed its dependencies.
The relationship works both ways. Give your broker access to the right people, supply updates when agreed, and say when an explanation is unclear. In return, expect advice you can understand, a clear account of the work undertaken, and honesty about what insurance cannot solve.
Success is not a promise that premiums will fall every year. It is being able to explain what you have bought, why you bought it, and what to do when something changes.
8. Recognise the warning signs
Price changes or a difficult conversation are not, on their own, signs that something is wrong. The more useful warning signs concern the quality and transparency of the process:
A recommendation arrives before anyone has properly explored what your organisation does
The discussion focuses on price while significant exclusions, conditions or gaps go unexplained
You cannot get a clear answer about market access, fees, commission or claims support
You are encouraged to omit an activity, minimise an incident, or sign information you know is inaccurate
You are promised that everything is covered or that a claim will definitely be paid
Renewals are repeatedly rushed without explanation, documents contain unresolved errors, or reasonable questions go unanswered
You cannot establish who is responsible for your account or how to raise concerns
Raise concerns directly. If important questions remain unresolved, consider a second opinion. Before changing arrangements, understand cancellation terms, replacement cover and any implications for earlier work or claims notification. Avoid creating a gap in cover while trying to improve the service.
Starting with an open conversation - not just a request for the cheapest quote - is always the right approach. Explain your organisation, what is changing, and what you need help understanding. A good broker relationship should make insurance less mysterious, and leave you better equipped to make decisions for yourself.
Ready to talk? Get in touch with the Talbot Jones team.
