(Dewitt, New York, June 2, 2016) - New York insurance agencies are feeling better about larger insurers and less so about smaller ones, an insurance producer trade group reported today. The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of New York (IIABNY) said that the IIABNY Industry Index, a measure of agents' and brokers' satisfaction with insurers, rose for national insurers and those that provide insurance in multiple states. It declined, however, for insurers who operate only in New York State.
"Insurance agents and brokers want consistent, responsive and fair treatment from insurers," observed Kathy Weinheimer, IIABNY's senior vice-president of industry relations. "The 2016 IIABNY Industry Index scores indicate that they are seeing that from the larger companies, while the New York only companies are slipping."
The index for personal insurance (insurance sold to individuals and households) declined 0.4 points from 2015. However, this decrease was driven entirely by the scores for regional companies, which fell 3.7 points. Super-regional companies saw their scores increase one point, while national companies saw a 1.4 point gain. Regional companies do business only in New York State; super-regionals do business in several states but not countrywide.
The index for commercial insurance (coverage sold to businesses, governments and other institutions) rose 1.2 points. The national companies led the way with a 3.1 point improvement. Super-regionals gained 1.1 points, while regionals lost 2.5 points.
Super-regional companies had the highest scores for both types of insurance.
The IIABNY Industry Index, which IIABNY publishes in the winter or spring each year, measures performance in areas such as: Underwriter empowerment; ease of use of technology; honest and fair treatment of agencies and customers; responsiveness of company personnel; and fairness of compensation arrangements. Scores for regional companies in both personal and commercial insurance fell across the board except for a slight uptick in personal insurance technology. Every other personal insurance category saw a decline of four points or more. Their commercial insurance scores fell by at least two points in every category other than technology, which fell by 1.2.
Conversely, the large national companies saw gains of four points or more for commercial insurance in partnership, responsiveness and compensation. Those were also the areas of greatest improvement for personal insurance. Super regionals also scored better in these three categories, but their results were mixed for underwriting, technology and fair treatment.
In addition to overall rankings, the index rated individual companies. The companies with the best scores received Outstanding Company Partner Awards at a ceremony during IIABNY's annual business meeting on May 12. They are:
Commercial Insurance
- National: The Travelers Companies
- Super Regional: Merchants Insurance Group
- Regional: Dryden Mutual Insurance Company
Personal Insurance
- National: The Travelers Companies
- Super Regional: The Andover Companies
- Regional: Sterling Insurance
IIABNY and research firm Vincent McCabe, Inc., calculated the index based on the results of a survey taken over a period of several weeks. 262 respondents participated in the survey. The results have a margin of error of plus or minus 5.5 percent.
The complete executive summary is available for download at http://www.iiabny.org/Companies/SiteAssets/Pages/IndustryIndex/Results/EXEC%20FINAL%20-%20Winter%202016%20-%20Executive%20SummaryV3.pdf.
The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of New York, Inc. has represented the common business interests of independent insurance professionals since 1882. More than 1,750 agencies and their 13,000 plus employees currently rely on the DeWitt, New York-based not-for-profit trade association for legislative advocacy, continuing education and other means of industry support. In addition, most IIABNY members proudly identify themselves as Trusted Choice® agents and brokers, a national consumer brand uniting more than 21,000 independent agencies across the United States. For more information, go to www.trustedchoice.com or www.iiabny.org.
Based in Skaneateles, New York, Vincent McCabe, Inc. is a full-service marketing and product research company specializing in the use of advanced methods to assist clients in rapid and efficient strategic decision-making and goal attainment. For more information, visit www.vincentmccabe.com.