The relationship between MGAs and brokers is central to the insurance lifecycle. For MGAs, brokers provide a tried and tested route to customers, while for brokers, MGAs offer specialist cover for customer needs at a fair price.
Yet, despite relying so heavily on each other, communication between brokers and MGAs hasn’t always been as smooth as it could be. From emails back and forth to filling out numerous quote forms, and rekeying data, both sides have bottlenecks in managing their insurance partnerships. These issues have affected turnaround times, customer experience, and profitability.
But the emergence of numerous new technologies and tools in recent years has led to a transformation in the efficiency of MGA-broker relationships, enabling the automation of quote turnaround, more personalised and precise quotes, more efficient communication, and ultimately greater profitability for both sides.
“MGAs (Managing General Agents) are rewriting the rules on how they work with brokers, not because they want to, but because they have to,” says James Shaffer, Managing Director, Insurance Panda. “Brokers expect instant quotes, seamless integrations, and zero headaches. If an MGA can’t deliver that, they’re dead in the water.”
We’ve identified three tools and technologies having the biggest impact on MGA-broker relationships. So, if your MGA isn’t already using these, you could be missing out on vital broker business.
Low and no-code digital platforms
The right digital platform can make life infinitely easier for brokers, enabling them to apply for quotes, access policy information, plus manage policy changes and renewals in one place. Recent research by Direct Commercial found that 78% of brokers see online access as a significant advantage when placing business, while 44% prioritise ease of access above product pricing.
“These platforms allow for more efficient communication, which helps reduce the time it takes to deliver custom quotes,” says Patrick Caruso, President, Caruso Insurance Services, a California-based MGA offering a range of personal and commercial policies.
The latest insurance platforms also make launching and adapting insurance products faster and more straightforward, thanks to no-code and low-code technology. This allows insurance professionals with minimal coding knowledge to build the exact policies brokers and customers need.
“MGAs are using these to build and adjust products on the fly without waiting for IT teams to reconfigure underwriting rules. Need to tweak pricing based on new loss ratios? Done in hours, not months,” says James Shaffer, Managing Director, Insurance Panda, a leading auto insurance quote comparison platform.
Digital platforms also act as an information hub where brokers can access policy details, exclusions, and other important information.
“By educating our clients through easily accessible online resources, we reduce misunderstandings and gaps in coverage,” says Don M Walters, Owner, The Ephraim Group, an MGA offering personal and commercial policies. “Brokers benefit from this because it enables them to provide more accurate and customised advice.”
Yet, just implementing a digital platform doesn’t guarantee success, with only 16% of brokers finding online portals user-friendly and effective for managing policies and claims. MGAs must therefore identify flexible software that can be customised to how they work and the needs of their broker partners – such as Insly.
APIs
The days of brokers reaching out to numerous MGAs or insurers individually to source quotes are numbered, with APIs enabling them to connect their systems directly with their MGA partners.
“APIs are another game changer,” says Shaffer at Insurance Panda. “The best MGAs now integrate directly into broker management systems (BMS) so brokers don’t have to log into a separate MGA portal. Everything, including submissions, endorsements, and renewals, happens within the broker’s workflow. Less friction, more efficiency.”
These platforms save significant time that would be spent sending emails and filling out numerous forms to receive quotes from a panel of underwriters. The result is faster quotes, and fewer errors from repeatedly rekeying the same information. APIs also enable brokers and MGAs to connect with third-party data to aid with completing customer risk details.
“As someone running a digital insurance brokerage, I’ve experienced how API-driven platforms and automated underwriting are transforming the way we work with MGAs to get quick, accurate quotes for our clients,” explains Gregory Rozdeba, CEO at Dundas Life, the Canadian life insurance MGA.
AI, machine learning, and predictive analytics
AI technologies, including natural language processing (NLP), large language models (LLMs), generative AI, and machine learning are revolutionising underwriting, enabling MGAs to process huge volumes of data in real time, for faster and more accurate quotes.
“Technologies like AI-powered underwriting and CRM systems are streamlining processes, enabling brokers to receive quick responses and minimise friction,” says Patrick Caruso, President, Caruso Insurance Services. “We benefit from digital tools that offer instant quotes, allowing us to quickly adapt and customise policies to match our clients’ unique needs. This not only speeds up the response time but also ensures a personalised experience for our clients.”
For brokers this speed of service can be a game-changer: “At Dundas Life, we recently partnered with an MGA that uses AI-powered risk assessment tools, which has helped us provide tailored life insurance quotes within minutes instead of days,” says Rozdeba.
AI tools are also streamlining the broker submission process, whereby brokers input quote details to MGA systems. Insly’s new AI-powered tool, FormFlow, removes this bottleneck by enabling brokers to submit risk details in any language and format, to be extracted and mapped by AI into MGA and insurer templates.
Insly estimates that, used alone, Formflow can increase the proportion of quotes processed by MGAs and insurers from around 30 to 40% to between 80 to 90% when used alongside an automated underwriting system.
“MGAs and insurers are losing out on a significant volume of potential sales due to a data-processing challenge,” comments Risto Rossar, CEO and Founder of Insly. “The tool we’ve created removes a huge cause of inefficiency, helping brokers and underwriters to collaborate more effectively, and aiding customers in sourcing the best cover.”
A competitive advantage
With the technology available today, there is no excuse for MGAs to ignore bottlenecks in their relationships with broker partners. With the role of brokers as important as ever in insurance distribution, optimising these interactions ensures MGAs are top of the list for the most valuable business, while making a real difference to the bottom line.
“The MGAs winning this game are the ones treating brokers like high-value customers, not middlemen. If they make the broker’s life easier, they win the business. If they don’t, another MGA will,” concludes James Shaffer, Managing Director, Insurance Panda.
For more information on Insly’s FormFlow and BrokerFlow tools, get in touch to book a demo, or to find out more.
