New Eastbridge report shows growth in broker business for voluntary carriers

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Feb 02, 2023, 08:00 ET

Majority of carriers using more brokers with more new cases per broker

AVON, Conn., Feb. 2, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Voluntary benefits carriers are working with more brokers now than just a year or two ago, according to a new Eastbridge study.

Eastbridge's "Broker Tracking Capabilities of Voluntary Carriers" Frontline™ Report shows more than half (53%) of carriers are doing business with more brokers than in the past one to two years. Only about a quarter say this number has dropped. In addition, more than a third of carriers surveyed say their number of voluntary cases per broker has increased during that time.

The report shows carriers monitor activity with brokers based on sales, products sold, in-force premium, case size and other factors, despite some challenges with tracking this information.

"Carriers tell us frequent mergers and acquisitions in the broker industry, broker hierarchies and agent-of-record changes can make it difficult to track their business with specific brokers and agencies," said Nick Rockwell, Eastbridge president. "Some carriers indicate they plan to place greater emphasis on their technology platforms to enable better tracking in the next few years."

The "Broker Tracking Capabilities of Voluntary Carriers" Frontline™ Report uses survey data from 24 voluntary benefit carriers collected in an online survey in December 2022 to identify how carriers track the brokers they do business with. Frontline™ reports are available only to survey participants and members of Eastbridge's Information Partner™ program. Information about joining the program is available on Eastbridge's website at http://www.eastbridge.com/research/IPSubscriber.html, by emailing [email protected] or by calling (860) 676-9633.

About Eastbridge Consulting Group

Eastbridge Consulting Group, Inc. is a marketing advisory firm serving companies focused on the voluntary/worksite benefits market in the United States and Canada. Follow Eastbridge on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/eastbridge-consulting-group.