A recent Insurance Business Magazine article posed a challenge to the industry: “Why insurers must rethink broker experience to stay competitive.” It’s a message that resonates across commercial insurance, and one that our own research strongly supports.
At Send, we recently completed an extensive market study, Catalyst: Underwriting Perspectives on a Changing Market, involving over 60 senior executives across North American carriers, MGAs, and brokerages. Their feedback paints a clear picture: the broker-carrier relationship is under strain, and operational misalignment is holding both sides back.
But that’s only part of the story. What stood out even more was the shared desire to improve it.
The Disconnect Is Real and Quantifiable
In our interviews, both brokers and carriers consistently pointed to issues that make underwriting slower, less collaborative, and more transactional than it should be.
Here’s what they told us:
- 78% of brokers said they need carriers to triage submissions more efficiently.
- 66% of brokers want better communication of appetite and capacity.
- 69% of carriers need more complete risk data from brokers.
- 56% of carriers say brokers must improve submission quality.
This is more than anecdotal frustration, it’s a measurable gap. When both sides recognize that workflows are broken, there’s an opportunity to build something stronger in its place.
Operational Improvement Is the Foundation for Better Relationships
Broker experience doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It’s shaped by how quickly and clearly underwriters can respond to new business, how well technology supports decision-making, and how consistently both sides align on risk.
Our research shows that forward-thinking carriers are no longer treating efficiency as a back-office initiative. Instead, they’re embedding it directly into how they partner with brokers, prioritizing:
- Defined and communicated underwriting appetite
- Clean, structured data collection
- Portfolio-level insight that supports smarter decision-making
One underwriting executive put it plainly:
The better the view across the book of business, the faster and more accurately we can quote. That benefits everyone.
– Jack Falvey CEO of Falvey Insurance.
Underwriting Tools Must Support the Broker Experience, Not Complicate It
The shift toward digital transformation in underwriting is already underway. But many organizations still rely on manual tools, Excel spreadsheets, email chains, static PDFs, that create delays and dilute insight.
In our conversations, executives spoke about the need to modernize not just technology stacks, but also workflows. The two must evolve together. Technology alone doesn’t improve broker experience unless it’s designed with that goal in mind.
This is where underwriting-specific platforms have a role to play. Streamlining data intake, centralizing documents, surfacing appetite in real time, these are not just back-end features. They’re essential to enabling faster, more transparent broker engagement.
Collaboration, Not Just Communication
If there was one theme that emerged over and over again in our research, it was the need for more structured collaboration. Communication helps. But without aligned processes, expectations, and tools, communication only gets us so far.
Carriers told us they want to work with brokers who understand their appetite and send on-target risks. Brokers want faster responses and clearer guidance. Both want underwriting to be more than a gatekeeper function. They want it to be a strategic partnership.
This requires technology that connects both sides, without adding complexity, and a shared commitment to improve how risk is presented, evaluated, and quoted.
Looking Ahead: 2025 Is a Pivotal Year
Nearly every executive we spoke to agreed: this is the year to act. After years of uncertainty, 2025 represents a reset, an opportunity to modernize, align, and grow.
The need to improve broker experience is not a trend. It’s a reflection of where the industry must go next.
At Send, we believe better broker experiences are a direct result of better underwriting experiences, supported by purpose-built tools, clean data, and shared intent.
We’re proud to be part of this transformation.
Read the Full Catalyst Report
Want to see what 60+ insurance leaders had to say about the future of underwriting?
Download the Report: https://innovate.send.technology/underwriting-perspectives-on-a-changing-market