March Recap: Endurance in an Unstable Market

Authored by DCL

As a leading MGA specialising in commercial motor insurance, Direct Commercial knows that as the market changes, stability is what matters most to customers. This is something we have been providing for over two decades but over the last year particularly, we have made it our mission to be as agile and flexible in our approach as possible.

Despite inflation increasing premiums for most, as an established MGA, we have done our level best to protect against and minimise these inflationary impacts and have seen a noticeable increase in quote and conversion activity as a result.

As we entered our 22nd year of trading this month, we added new products to our portfolio and made adjustments to existing offerings to support broker and policyholder needs…

It’s now even easier to get a quote

The introduction of our new-look quotation document has made getting and comparing your quotation options from DCL even easier. Once we are given the details of your risk, our underwriters are able to share both 12 month or 3 year quote options for a range of our products (if applicable to the risk), so you and your client can make an informed decision.

We also welcomed Stuart Baker, our new BDM for the South West and South Wales, to the team! Stuart joins us with over 30 years’ experience in the insurance industry and will be using this knowledge and the DCL products to work with you to provide insurance solutions for your clients’ risks.

Supporting brokers in the long-term

We strive for long-lasting and transparent working relationships with our brokers and in order to continue to facilitate this we have made a number of changes to support you. This includes the introduction of a second version of our T20 premium stability plan.

As many of you will know, our T20 premium stability plans are our way of protecting policyholders’ premiums from market pressures with a separate overarching agreement covering 3 annual contracts of insurance. Premium pricing for the 2nd& 3rd year are calculated by way of a pre-set adjustment scale which is directly reflective of the loss ratio of the fleet. This means clients can enjoy fixed pricing for three years, which allows for effective cash flow forecasting, and annual year-on-year premium reductions of up to 20% can be achieved.

When you’re the placing broker of a T20 risk, our second version gives you the option to be named on the T20 agreement in recognition of your support. If another broker tries to get appointed on that risk during that 3-year period, we will actively involve you in discussions. Our tried and tested original T20 also remains available, and the adjustment brackets remain unchanged for another year!

We are also giving brokers the right to cancel a policy on the same basis as a policyholder. You can read the specific detail of this term in the ‘Conditions’ section of our policy documents. In most cases, it is covered under point 8 ii) in this section.

Introducing a new product

We were becoming increasingly aware that many of the fleets presented to us by brokers had already invested in vehicle CCTV. We wanted to provide flexibility and an alternative option for those who still wanted the same great cover and service from DCL but were not looking to change that camera provider or install additional equipment.

Our discounted Connect policy was developed to take full advantage of already existing vehicle cameras and help policyholders maximise the return on this investment. Connect operates much like our Camatics offering, in terms of helping to drive down claims and premiums. However, policyholders are now able to submit footage from their own vehicle cameras following an incident as opposed to having to use the equipment we would usually provide and fit.

We want to reward those that are already risk aware. When policyholders choose Connect, the product can deliver discounted premiums and the benefit of an excess waiver of up to £1000.

When the policyholder reports their claim & submits the relevant footage within 24 hours of the incident using our dedicated online portal, our claims team are able to ensure effective third-party intervention, mitigate claims costs and fight fraud using the video evidence.

Motor Fleet becomes our Premier policy

Our long-standing motor fleet policy has been supporting policyholders since DCL’s inception 21 years ago and is an integral part of our portfolio. As we continue to develop and expand our products, and to recognise this established fleet policy, we gave this wording a name!

Your clients will still receive the same great product and service, but our existing Motor Fleet policy will now be known as our Premier policy. Premier can cover the majority of risks, including those with mild exposure to the carriage of ADR-categorised goods. Remember, cover can also be extended to include trailers, annual green cards and flexible driver warranties.

Want to discuss a commercial motor risk?

Our field team of BDMs are out on the road visiting brokers all week, you can find out who your local BDM is by using our helpful region map.

Get a meeting booked in today to see how we can help.