A new survey conducted by Assurant Intermediary in March and April has provided insight into what brokers understand by ‘service’.

After the 2009 survey, where brokers ranked service as essential, with 90% listing it as the most important reason for selecting an insurance provider, this year’s survey explored the concept of service, seeking to identify specific qualities that define service from a provider.

Brokers identified speed of response as the primary indicator, with a score of 72%. 43% named accuracy and speed of commissions paid, and 32% selected IT support as a critical indicator of quality service.

The specialist insurance provider carried out the survey amongst more than 2,000 mortgage brokers in the UK.

“The word ‘service’ can be interpreted in a variety of ways, so this year we wanted to drill down and find out what aspects of service matter most to our brokers,’ said Kevin Paterson (pictured), sales and marketing director at Assurant Intermediary.

“By understanding the specific aspects of service that are most important to brokers we can ensure we continue to align with their needs. Speed of response is important to our business as well, and it is something we continually invest in. This year we achieved accreditation with the Institute of Customer Service which rates speed of response highly amongst its criteria.”

Meanwhile, the two lowest ranking attributes included commission levels, which rated at 19% and local BDM support, which came in last at 15%.

Paterson said: “The BDM figure is particularly interesting. A high percentage of brokers also named it as ‘important’ or ‘very important,’ so opinion is clearly split on this. Perhaps those who don’t view it as important don’t receive a good service from their BDM and so don’t know what they are missing, I think this is indicative of the recent trend by some providers to pull back on BDM support.

“Many businesses view the sales function purely as bringing business in through the door. We don’t subscribe to that opinion. Having the right products to attract new business is meaningless if your business fails to deliver superior service. We pride ourselves on delivering the very best service to intermediaries. That means our BDMs are focused not just on developing new relationships but also on maintaining them.”