However, much like a business has insurance for physical liabilities, businesses are now often required to have cyber insurance to protect their digital business assets from loss, theft, or destruction. Unfortunately, this doesn’t make getting insurance any easier, as cyber insurance is complex and policies are dependent on a number of factors. In order to connect customers with effective cyber insurance, how are brokers helping their customers understand what goes into finding a policy?
Insurance Brokerage
As an insurance broker, your job is to provide expertise and connect your client with a policy that covers their digital business assets. Coverage ensures your client’s bottom line in the event of a cybersecurity breach or other harmful cyber event that targets these digital business assets. When speaking with customers about cyber insurance brokerage, remember that they’ve dealt with other insurance brokerage firms or liaisons. Customers have most likely spoken to a car insurance broker or a home insurance broker to find the best policy available for a reasonable rate. It’s unsurprising for clients to feel intimidated by cyber insurance brokerage because it’s such a relatively new type of insurance brokerage. In a field where digital threats to critical business assets are constantly evolving, so are policies and what they cover. How are brokers helping their customers understand cyber insurance? They are helping by drawing similarities between cyber insurance and familiar types of insurance. Even though cyber insurance is newer, it functions largely the same as other types of commercial insurance. It’s also very helpful to know how you can help your clients to gain coverage, beyond finding a cyber insurance company and policy.
Cyber Insurance Brokerage
Because it’s common for a company’s general liability policy to exclude cyber coverage, you’ll have to guide your clients through the process of figuring out what kind of cyber cover they’ll need. This includes taking an inventory of their digital assets to see which ones need protection. For cyber insurance brokerage, how are brokers helping their customers understand what kind of documentation their companies need in order to get approved for coverage?
Explaining Policy Language
You can use the analogy to car insurance for your clients to help them understand policy language. When customers are looking for a new car insurer, potential insurance companies will want to look at past driving and claims history to see if taking them on will be a liability. Of course, a car insurer will more likely want to cover a new customer if they have a great driving history and a small number of claims (if any). As your clients look for cyber coverage, you’ll guide them through want cyber insurers are looking for in companies that they cover, and most likely, this includes walking them through pre-underwriting.
Preparation Through Pre-Underwriting
Unlike car insurance, cyber insurance is scarce, so your clients need to have a solid application in order to gain good coverage. Pre-underwriting is the process of gathering the necessary documentation from your client to complete a strong application for cyber insurance. As a cyber insurance broker, keeping open communication with your clients ensures that they’re confident about what the process entails. Cyber insurers require a digital asset inventory, risk control protocols, and that you’re involved with the application process. They also greatly appreciate accurate and detailed digital asset and risk information, as well as hard evidence to support the documentation. This might seem overwhelming to your clients, but when you outline exactly how they can gather each type of information, they’ll be able to give you the necessary documentation.
Help Them Asses Digital Risk
Another way how are brokers helping their customers understand the cyber insurance process is by helping them what their digital risks are. This is also part of pre-underwriting, but well worth it to be expanded upon. Cyber insurers are looking for clients that have low digital risk so they’re not as much of a liability and have a low chance of filing a claim. Knowing your client’s data security protocols, potential cyber risks, and IT infrastructure is all part of assessing their digital risk. Your clients can also start to track their digital risk. You can even encourage them to implement better cyber hygiene practices as they apply for cyber insurance. This shows that they’re proactive and that you know your stuff as a cyber insurance broker.
Commercial Cyber Insurance
Once your client’s application is accepted for commercial cyber insurance, the work doesn’t end just yet. It’s preferable that you get your client approved for different policies so they can weigh their options. In this case, how are brokers helping their customers understand the next steps in commercial cyber insurance? As their broker, you will help them to compare policies as well as continue to provide ongoing support regarding the coverage that they choose.
Compare Policies
Regardless if your customer’s applications are approved for different commercial cyber insurance or if you’re able to ballpark their potential policies at different insurers, you’ll need to break down the specifics of each policy that your clients are eligible for. Your clients might not notice the difference between policies, but as their broker, you can point out and explain crucial differences that can make or break their decision. The effects of cyberattacks are serious, and you want your clients to get the best coverage possible. However, to do this, they need your help in navigating the different policies and your expert recommendation on which policy to go with.
Remain their Liasion
Lastly, it’s critical that you continue to work with your clients, as they have more questions about their policy, digital risk, and even switching policies in the future. Your clients want to know that they have a point person to ask these questions, especially someone who patiently went through the process of initially finding cyber coverage with them.
Follow Leaders In The Industry
Cyber insurance is new and complex. Luckily, companies that are looking for coverage have the ability to work with the experts– cyber insurance brokers. From explaining policy language to helping them asses their digital risk and comparing policies, being a broker is such an important role in keeping a business and its associates covered in the event of a cyberattack.
At SecondSight, we’ve simplified the process of connecting your clients to their next cyber insurer. We believe that companies can gain coverage with the right tools. With our Workbench and Digital Risk Tracker, we make that happen.
