An honest question deserves an honest answer: not every insurance matter needs a broker. A simple, repeat matter is often something a company can handle well on its own. A broker adds the most where the stakes or the complexity rise – and the construction/erection world is full of such situations. Here's the map: when it pays off to bring one in, and what you get for it.
- Typical broker situations: a first CAR policy, a tender requirement, a complex project, a disputed claim, sorting out a portfolio.
- The broker is the client's broker acting on their instructions – not an insurer's.
- The advice is free of charge: the insurer pays the intermediary's remuneration.
- The decision stays with the client at every step.
The typical situations
A first project policy: where there's no routine yet, mistakes in structuring cover are the most costly – this is where needs assessment adds the most. A tender or client requirement: cover and a certificate are needed to a deadline, with precise content – with a language layer for German requirements: foreign client. A complex project: existing property, a deep chain, mixed CAR/EAR content, a consortium. A disputed claim: where the case has stalled or positions clash: how the broker helps. Sorting out a portfolio: when all of a company's cover needs putting in order in one go: portfolio article.
What does a broker do – and not do?
What a broker does: assess the need, obtain competing quotes from several insurers, make the differences understandable, handle the administration (inception, forwarding reported changes, certificates), and help the client find their way in stalled cases, where possible. What a broker doesn't do: decide on the client's behalf, promise an outcome, or "sort out" the claim in place of the insurer – a routine claim follows the insurer's claims line. A clear division of roles is the basis of trust: I assess the need and explain the options – the decision is the client's.
What does it cost?
It's free of charge for the client: the insurer pays the intermediary's remuneration – that's standard market practice, and we're open about it. The practical consequence: bringing in a broker isn't a cost question, it's a question of time and quality – you need to weigh how much a competitively sourced, tailor-made cover and the administration taken off your hands are worth to you.
How does it start?
With a 20-minute conversation: how the consultation works. Bring the project's key facts – or just your questions: either one leads to a usable next step. Book a slot in the calendar: booking; anyone who'd like to look into it first can find the Insights library's 80 articles and the two-minute self-check there.
A question tailored to your own project? Book a free 20-minute project consultation →
