When it comes to buying commercial property-casualty insurance, most agents and brokers encourage their clients to put all their eggs in one basket, an insurance company survey has found.

Apparently it's a good idea, according to a poll by Wausau Insurance, which reported that among firms that integrate multiple lines of coverage with one carrier, 83 percent reported productivity savings.

The Wausau survey of insurance buyers recorded that 58 percent of respondents said their agent or broker always or usually encourage them to place multiple lines of coverage with one carrier.

Despite this advice, the November 2005 survey found that 70 percent of those questioned now report their company has integrated multiple lines of insurance with one commercial carrier. This is a big drop from 2004, when 89 percent said they integrated multiple lines with one insurer, Wausau said.

Two hundred risk managers, chief financial officers and other executives purchasing coverage were polled, Wausau said. Fewer small companies are in the group that integrates its coverage, according to the survey.

Wausau's survey, conducted by Boston-based Atlantic Research & Consulting, found that 89 percent of the firms making savings through integration have trimmed the cost of their overall risk management program by at least 4 percent.

Some 35 percent said they made savings of 7-to-10 percent. And the biggest productivity gain comes from combining workers' compensation and general liability with one carrier, 35 percent of respondents reported.

The line which provides the least saving in combination is commercial auto, most of those polled said.

Full results from the Wausau, Wis.-based company's poll are available online at www.wausau.com/poll.

Special Reports /

Poll: Using Just One Insurer =s Savings

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