Even if you Buy Insurance From a Broker Is Only Getting Half the Story
Updated: 2 hours ago
Buying insurance from a broker can feel like you have covered the whole market. In many cases, you have only seen half the story.
That is not a criticism of brokers. General insurance brokers are great, because generally speaking they represent several different insurance companies. The problem is what has happened to that choice over the last 25 years, and how few clients realise it has changed.
The Broker Promise
The promise of a broker is choice. Instead of going to one insurance company, you go to someone who can compare several companies and find the best fit for you.
That promise still sounds right. The question is how many companies are actually on the shelf behind it.
A broker can only offer you the insurers they have a contract to represent. If an insurer is not on their shelf, they cannot place your business with that insurer, no matter how well it might fit you.
What Changed in 25 Years
Twenty five years ago, a broker would typically have access to 10 to 15 major markets to choose from. Insurance companies used to differentiate themselves from one another, and each one specifically attracted a particular market segment. One might want standard homes, another might want high value homes, another might focus on a certain type of business.
Fast forward 25 years to 2026, and that picture looks very different. Through a tremendous rate of consolidation and acquisition, the number of insurance company options has reduced significantly. A broker who would have had 15 markets is now limited to less than 5.
During the same period, we have seen an increase in the number of insurance companies choosing to sell direct to consumer and bypass the broker, the middle man, or use agents who sell their product exclusively. Those companies are not on a broker shelf at all.
So the shelf has shrunk from both sides. There are fewer companies to choose from, and more companies are selling in ways a broker cannot access.
The Stock Broker Test
Put it this way. Imagine having a stock broker. The expectation is that the broker would have access to buy and sell shares in all publicly traded companies.
Now apply the current insurance model. Your stock broker cannot buy or sell blue chip stocks because they do not have enough volume to purchase them. Or the broker does not have a contract with that company to represent them. Then say the blue chip company has decided it will only sell its shares using a single agent.
Would you still call that a full market? Would you trust that you were getting the best advice?
That is exactly the situation the general insurance market has created for itself.
Why This Frustrated Me as a Brokerage Owner
Why do I bring this to light? As the owner of a brokerage, I was always frustrated that we made ourselves out to be brokers, but our offering was only limited to the insurers we had contracts with.
I was always conflicted. I knew there were situations where a client would be best suited with an insurance company that I did not represent, but I could not help them. The client thought they had seen the market. In reality, they had only seen the part of the market I could access.
That conflict stayed with me. It is a difficult position to be in when you know the right answer for a client, and you cannot act on it because of how the system is set up.
What Independence Changes
This is the reason I started Jasper Private Insurance Consultants. I can literally help every customer regardless of the insurance company, broker, agent, adjuster, or anyone else involved.
My reviews and advice are not limited or slanted in favour of anyone other than the consumer. I do not sell insurance. I do not represent an insurer. I am not paid by one side to steer you to the other.
That independence changes the question. Instead of asking which insurer on this shelf is the least bad fit, we can ask which arrangement is actually the best fit for you, wherever it came from.
Are You Getting the Whole Story?
If your insurance was placed through a broker, an agent, or direct with one company, it is worth asking:
How many insurers were actually compared for you?
Was the best fit for you on that shelf, or somewhere else entirely?
Has consolidation changed what your broker can offer since you first bought the policy?
Would an independent review confirm your current arrangement, or find a gap?
Sometimes the answer will be that your current arrangement is working exactly as it should. Other times, you will find you were only seeing half the story.
Either way, you deserve to know.
Book a complimentary assessment and get an independent review of your insurance, with advice that is focused solely on you.
www.jasperpic.com | (780) 994-7656
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