Perspectives | Insurance Consultants

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Insurance Consultants

August, 2007 - It occurred to us that finding an insurance consultant is risky business. Insurance brokers, insurance agencies and even insurance companies claim to be insurance consultants -- or to have insurance consulting units. Some insurance consultants refer to themselves as risk management consultants, a term shared with providers of credit, operational, political and other forms of non-insurance related consulting services.

The insurance world is divided into two broad sectors:

The property/casualty sector includes all forms of property and liability insurance, workers compensation insurance and other miscellaneous forms of casualty insurance. Additionally, some insurance consultants offer claims, casualty actuarial and self-insurance feasibility services.

The employee benefits insurance sector includes health, life and disability insurance. Additionally, some empoloyee benefits consultants offer compensation, pension actuarial and self-funding services.

Questions You Need to Ask

  1. Am I concerned about event risks (fires, law suits, accidents and other fortuitous events) or risks which cannot be treated with insurance?
  2. Do I want a property/casualty insurance consultant or an employee benefits insurance consultant?
  3. Is my concern how to finance, fund and/or insure property/casualty risks and employee benefits?
  4. Or, is my principal concern safety, accident prevention, claim administration, utilization review and other forms of non-insurance risk treatment?
  5. Do I want an independent consulting organization that does not sell insurance products?
  6. Or, am I comfortable dealing with a a consultant that is affiliated with a supplier of insurance products?

 

 

Choosing an insurance consultant is not as simple as answering the above either or questions. For example, some insurance consultants are capable of putting together multi-disciplinary teams. Additionally, Enterprise Risk Management has emerged as a new discipline capable of identifying, analyzing and recommending risk treatments for both insurance and non-insurable forms of risk.

However, assuming you have determined which kind of consultant you need, we suggest that you visit Business Insurance, a weekly insurance tabloid. BI conducts annual surveys of risk management and employee benefits consultants. They also sell their Market SourceBook for $50.00. This directory provides contact information on all categories of insurance and risk management consultants.

Don't be afraid to ask your insurance broker or agent for a referral. It is commonplace for insurance consumers to utilize independent consultants and your local agent should know who is capable -- and licensed in states requiring it -- to serve you.

Montclair Risk Advisors is capable of providing a broad array of insurance consulting services. Visit our Services Menu to get an idea of the various kinds of consulting projects we and our peers can perform.