Posted On: June 9, 2005, 8:58 am CDT

Posted By: Don P

First, I agree that the large brokers and the smaller brokers are different kettles of fish...but the small brokerage climate generally follows what happens with the larger brokers. Insurers don't have time to reinvent the wheel. The large brokers have a reputation on the street for bullying underwriters and throwing their weight around, and that is a clear conflict with commission based income from the very companies they are bullying. The system is inherently unfair and inequitable when smaller brokers are brought into the picture. The fee based system would clearly not be a panacea but it would present a fairer and more equitable model for compensation.

I respectfully disagree with your opinion of Robert Hunter, and I have a sense that Hunter (a former commissioner) does understand the insurance industry all too well. Yes, he does have a bias toward the smaller consumer of insurance, but that is the role he plays.