For retail brokers, knowing when to bring in a wholesale broker is one of the most useful judgements you can make. Used well, a wholesale partner expands what you can place without putting your client relationship at any risk. Here is how we think brokers should approach it.

What a wholesale broker actually does

A wholesale broker sits between you and the specialist markets — in our case, Lloyd’s and the wider London Market. We do not deal with your client directly and we never compete for them. Instead, we use our market access and technical knowledge to place risks that fall outside a standard regional or composite appetite, then hand the terms back to you to present to your client.

Signs a risk belongs in the London Market

• Your usual markets have declined it, applied heavy loadings, or imposed restrictive terms.
• The exposure is technical or unusual — environmental and pollution liability, complex marine, or event cancellation, for example.
• The risk needs specialist capacity or a bespoke structure rather than an off-the-shelf wording.
• You want a faster, better-presented submission to secure competitive terms.

How to get the best result

The quality of a submission has a direct effect on the terms you get back. Clear information about the client’s operations, claims history and the exposure you want covered lets a wholesale broker present the risk to the right underwriters first time. Where speed matters, a facility with delegated authority — like our in-house General Liability facility — can return an indication quickly without the back-and-forth of a full open-market placement.

The bottom line

Bringing in a wholesale broker is not a sign that a risk is too difficult — it is a way to widen your reach and keep your client. The key is to involve the right partner early, with a well-prepared submission, so the specialist market sees the risk at its best.