A cyber insurance broker is worth paying for when the proposal form stops being a tick box exercise. Online cyber cover is quick and perfectly adequate for a business with simple systems and a modest exposure. Once there is an outsourced data processor, a payments role, an overseas client base or a previous incident in the file, the questions stop having obvious answers and a broker earns the fee in the wording rather than in the price.
What a broker actually does on a cyber placement
Translates what the business does into the language the underwriter uses. Presents the controls in a way that gets the right questions asked rather than the wrong assumptions made. Compares wordings rather than premiums, which is difficult to do from a comparison site because the differences are in definitions and conditions. Negotiates sub limits and conditions. And, at claim time, argues the business's corner with somebody they deal with regularly.
When an online quote is genuinely fine
A business with standard office systems, no payments role beyond paying its own suppliers, a modest client file and no previous incident can buy sound cyber cover online from a recognised insurer in a few minutes. The important part is not the channel, it is that the proposal answers are true and that the schedule names the sections you expected. Paying a broker to place a simple risk adds cost without adding much.
How to check who you are dealing with
Brokers are authorised firms and the register is public. Look the name up, confirm the permissions, and ask who the insurer behind the quote actually is. Ask how the broker is paid: commission from the insurer, a fee from you, or both. None of those is wrong, and knowing which one applies tells you how to read the recommendation.
The questions worth asking any broker before you appoint them
How many cyber claims have you handled in the last year. Which insurers will you approach and why those. What is the incident response arrangement on the policies you are recommending. Will you review my client contracts against the limit. A broker who answers those crisply is doing cyber properly; one who answers with a premium is selling a commodity.
Questions people ask about cyber insurance broker
Do I pay the broker or the insurer?
Usually the premium goes to the insurer and the broker is paid commission out of it, sometimes with an additional fee disclosed to you. Ask for the arrangement in writing.
Is a broker more expensive than buying direct?
Not necessarily. Brokers have access to schemes and wordings that are not sold direct, and the price difference on a simple risk is often small. On a complicated risk the broker route is frequently cheaper because the risk is presented properly.
How do I find a cyber specialist broker?
The British Insurance Brokers Association runs a find a broker service that can filter by specialism, and the Financial Conduct Authority register confirms authorisation.
Can my existing broker handle cyber?
Often yes, and the advantage is that they already hold your other policies and can stop the wordings from arguing. Ask the claims experience question anyway.