Insurance Cold Call Script

Opener

Hi [first name], this is [your name] with [agency]. I'm an insurance broker, so you already know why I'm calling, and I promise I'm not going to ask you to switch anything today. Can I take 40 seconds and then you tell me if it's worth continuing?

Business owners decide you are 'just another insurance call' in three seconds. Saying it yourself removes the thing they were about to say and makes the 40-second ask sound reasonable.

Reason for the call

I work with [trade or industry] businesses in [area], and I've been looking at how [their type of business] is being rated this year. [Carrier or market] changed how they classify [exposure: subcontractors, vehicles, premises], and a lot of owners are paying for coverage that doesn't match what they actually do.

A market change gives the call a reason that is not 'I want your commission'. It also shows you know their trade, which almost no caller does.

Value hook

I'm not going to tell you I'll save you money, because I haven't seen your policy. What I can tell you is that when I review [trade] accounts, about half of them are either overpaying on a class code or underinsured on something that would hurt them in a claim. Either one is worth knowing before your renewal, not after.

Refusing to promise savings is the credibility move. Owners have heard 'I can save you money' from every agent and they have learned it means a lowball quote with worse coverage.

Qualifying question

Quick question so I don't waste your time: when does your [general liability / package / comp] renew, and has anyone actually walked through the policy with you in the last couple of years, or does it just auto-renew?

Renewal date is the only qualifying fact that matters in commercial insurance. The second half of the question surfaces the resentment most owners feel about an agent who only shows up to collect.

Handling the first pushback

That's fair, and if your agent is doing a real review every year, keep them. Most aren't. I'm not asking you to switch; I'm asking whether you'd want a second set of eyes on the policy 60 days before renewal so that if there's a gap, you have time to fix it. Would that be useful or annoying?

The 'we have a guy' objection is loyalty mixed with laziness. Honouring the loyalty and lowering the effort to a document review keeps the door open.

Close

Here's the simple version: send me your current declarations page, I'll take 20 minutes with it, and I'll call you back with what I see, good or bad. No quote unless you ask for one. Can I email you my details now so you have them, and I'll check in [two weeks before renewal]?

Asking for a declarations page instead of a full application is a tiny ask, and it is the real first step. Pinning a callback to their renewal timeline keeps you in the window that matters.

"We've been with the same agent for 15 years."

That's a good thing, and loyalty like that usually means they've looked after you. The only question I'd ask is whether they've walked you through the policy in the last two years or whether it's been auto-renewing. If they have, keep them. If they haven't, a second look costs you a declarations page and nothing else.

"Just give me a quote and I will compare."

I can, but a quote without seeing your policy will be wrong in one of two ways: cheaper because it covers less, or the same price because it's a guess. Send me the dec page and I'll quote apples to apples. That way you're comparing coverage, not just a number.

"Our renewal is not for another eight months."

Perfect, that's actually the best time to look. If I find a problem at eight months out, you can fix it at renewal with no penalty. If I find it at two weeks out, you're stuck for a year. Can I put a note to check in with you 90 days before, and in the meantime take a look at what you have?

"I do not want my rates going up because I shopped around."

Shopping doesn't raise your rates; claims and class codes do. Reviewing your policy with me doesn't touch your current carrier at all. If anything, finding a misclassification is the thing most likely to bring the premium down.