Corporate risk managers aregenerally dissatisfied with the level of service they get from bothbrokers and insurers, and very few of these insurance providersdistinguish themselves in the marketplace, a consulting servicesurvey found.

Stamford, Conn.-based consulting firm Greenwich Associatesreleased its 2010 Large Corporate Insurance Study survey of 683corporate risk managers earlier this year, finding that the mostnotable names on the insurance brokerage and carrier side of thebusiness are doing little to differentiate themselves from thecompetition.

The survey, conducted by telephone from October to December of2009, interviewed risk managers at companies with annual revenue of$500 million or more in the United States.

Among its findings, of the 10 major insurance brokers in thisniche business, only two–Beecher Carlson Insurance Services andBB&T insurance services–were rated excellent, GreenwichAssociates said.

On the carrier side, FM Global and Chubb Corp. receivedexcellent favorability ratings, the firm said.

The three major insurance brokers–Aon Corp., Marsh &McLennan and Willis Group–were rated below the median favorabilityrating, while Integro Insurance Broker and Lockton Companies Inc.were at the median, receiving excellent ratings from 30 percent ofrespondents.

Wells Fargo Insurance, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. and WillisGroup fell at or below 20 percent.

For insurers, ACE and Travelers Insurance Co. were scored in themedian range at 25 percent of risk managers giving the companies anexcellent rating, while XL, The Hartford Insurance Co., LibertyMutual, Zurich Financial Services, The Chartis Group and AmericanInternational Group were at or below 20 percent.

David Fox, managing director for Greenwich Associates, explainedthat the survey is an examination of who really stands out in theminds of risk managers in terms of branding and service.

There are certain tangible and intangible elements that riskmanagers find important when evaluating whom they do business with,noted Mr. Fox.

Among the important intangibles are ease to work with, ethics,flexibility, financial strength, innovation, and transparency inpricing and compensation.

Mr. Fox noted that for risk managers, if any of these elementsare missing from the equation, the relationship won't last.

“If you didn't rate well on one of these items, you didn't getused,” observed Mr. Fox. “In other words, if they gave [a broker orinsurer] a low rating in ethicality, they either disengaged orintended to disengage.”

The fact that risk managers are dissatisfied with their brokersand carriers underscores that there is a new breed of professionalslooking for partners that can distinguish themselves, Mr. Foxsaid.

“Most have the product capability,” he said of insurancebrokers, but risk managers are seeking brokers who can provide moredepth to the relationship.

“There is a new world out there, and risk managers are under agreat deal of pressure from boards and the C-suite, and brokers andcarriers have to do what's necessary to really distinguishthemselves,” observed Robert Mata, corporate relationship managerfor Greenwich.

“I think what we are showing here is that they are not doingthat right now and there are certain things that they can do todistinguish themselves and take that extra step forward in the eyesof the risk manager,” he added.

The report is available from Greenwich Associates by e-mail at[email protected].