Each new year brings fresh opportunities for insurance brokers to prepare for success by observing the trends and evaluating how those patterns can positively impact business. Here are two trends to watch and learn more about so you can pivot and adapt your insurance business.
Workers’ Comp Rates Dropping. The price of workers’ compensation insurance is projected to continue going down for many businesses nationwide in 2018. Many factors are contributing to the expected decrease.
A report by the National Academy of Social Insurance shows workers’ comp benefits as a share of payroll falling for the fourth straight year in a row.
The National Council on Compensations Insurance Inc. (NCCI) filing for the 2018 workers’ compensation rate shows a decrease in the voluntary base rate and a decrease for assigned risk workers’ compensation rates.
The rate drop is due, in part, to the decline of the frequency of workers comp injuries across the nation.
Companies are also improving back-to-work programs to help injured employees recover and start work more quickly.
While Workers’ Comp reform is occurring nationwide, it does vary from state to state. From medical benefit caps to cost-control measures on pharmaceuticals to reducing the amount doctors can charge. This reform doesn’t necessarily mean more business for brokers, but it can mean more work. With so many states reforming their Workers’ Comp programs, brokers are destined to play an important role helping clients manage WC costs.
Technology Reshaping Insurance. Technology is pervasive as it impacts everything we do today including how insurance works. Gone are the days of paper processing and dialing for quotes. Technology now enables insurance brokers to efficiently use their time to access a large number of markets and products for quotes online.
Technology and the use of smartphones have given most of your customers the expectation of instant results. In turn, this means you must work smarter and embrace technology to pull together quotes for your customers rapidly. You can harness the power of technology by signing up for a free Syndicated Insurance Resources account that will give you quick access to more than 150 markets and over 40 unique product offerings. The free technology does the work for you to find fast quotes, place those who are high risk, and you even earn higher commissions. You can also tap into offering General Liability through Syndicated or even add General Liability Sign Up onto your website. Another option is StaffPro Plus, which helps you meet the staffing, payroll and insurance needs of your smaller employer-clients with a low-cost, subscription-based service.
In addition to using the technology to increase your speed and responsiveness, you need to enter 2018 prepared to sell your clients on modernizing. From online employee enrollment to electronic claim filing and paying their accounts online, there are lots of tools that allow you to perform sales and service on their mobile devices, laptops, and PCs. You simply need to tap into them and make them part of your offering.
Make 2018 your best year yet by staying on top of trends and making changes to how you deliver products and services to your clients.