Why Working with a Broker Still Matters: A Real Story
When companies question the value of using a broker, they often talk about the cost. “We’re saving money by going direct.” But what gets lost in that conversation is what they’re not getting – and what that lack of expertise can cost them.
Here’s a story from a recent health insurance renewal we handled that highlights exactly why expert broker support isn’t just valuable – it’s essential.
A New Client, a Familiar Problem
This renewal was for a newly appointed client. Before working with us, they were going direct – handling their international health insurance without a broker.
Soon after we got involved, we received their annual renewal documents from the insurer. Nothing in the cover email mentioned any changes. Unfortunately, this is standard practice for most insurers. No summary of updates. Just: “Please sign and return.”
What We Found
As always, we did a detailed side-by-side review of the expiring policy vs the renewal policy. This is not just a quick skim. We use comparison software and go through eveything manually, line-by-line.
We uncovered several differences in the wording, but one clause stood out:
A new restriction stating that all members must be permanent residents of the policyholder’s country and must not spend more than 90 consecutive days outside of it.
This new wording wasn’t present in the prior policy. And while this type of rule is not necessarily a problem it stood out because we were also reviewing the member census…
The Catch: Students Abroad
The problem? The client has a number of dependent children on the plan who are studying at college overseas, including in the USA. We immediately raised the conflict.
The insurer replied that they were unaware any members were living abroad, even though these dependent children had been on the plan for the past 11 months – and not permanent residents of the policyholder’s country.
Worse still, the insurer noted that they are not licensed to cover US citizens living full-time in the United States – a regulatory issue. And yet, the client had been paying premiums for these students all year, under the assumption they were covered.
Had a large claim arisen, it likely would have been rejected. And the client might never have realized – until it was too late.
A Narrow Escape
Luckily, this problem has now been caught. We’ve flagged the issue, worked with the insurer to correct the agreement, and are helping re-structure the policy to avoid this risk going forward.
But the takeaway is clear:
“Working with the right insurance broker is not an expense – it’s an investment”
Former Cigna APAC CEO
An investment in:
- Understanding the fine print
- Avoiding expensive gaps in coverage
- Negotiating policy terms that actually match your organization’s needs
- Being protected from regulatory exposure
This client was very lucky. Many others aren’t.
One World Cover: We’ve Got Your Back
At One World Cover, we don’t just compare quotes – we review policy agreements and contracts in full. We advocate for our clients at renewal, during claims, and every step in between.
We’ve seen this scenario far too many times: companies trying to “save” by going direct, only to find out the hard way that no one was truly looking out for them.
We make sure our clients don’t face those surprises.
If you’re tired of managing this alone, or you simply want to know what’s really in your policy, please get in touch.
To learn more please get in touch: [email protected] or click here to contact us.
