Captive insurance, for Independent Agents
A captive is not a product you sell. It is a company your client owns a piece of, funded with the premium they were already paying. When losses come in under what was funded, the money stays with the members instead of the carrier. Here is how ours are built, who fits, and what it takes to submit.
At a glance
Where the money goes when nobody is watching it.
In a guaranteed cost policy, your client pays a premium and the carrier keeps whatever is left after claims. In a captive, that leftover belongs to the members. That is the whole idea. Everything else is structure built to make it safe.
- They fund their own losses inside a defined layer instead of renting coverage
- Underwriting profit that used to leave the building stays eligible for distribution
- Loss control stops being a talking point and starts being worth real money
- They see where every dollar of their spend actually goes
- You stay the agent. The client and the broker of record relationship are yours
- They still get an A rated paper policy and a certificate that satisfies contracts
- A catastrophic loss still lands on a carrier, not on your client
- You lead the client conversations. We handle the technical work behind them
How the money moves through an A/B captive.
Premium goes in
Your client funds the captive with premium priced off their own loss history, not a class average.
Costs come off the top
Roughly 35% covers operating costs, reinsurance, and the fronting carrier. That part is spent, not banked.
Reserves get funded
The remaining 65% funds reserves, split 70/30 into an A Fund for frequent claims and a B Fund for larger ones.
The carrier backstops
Above the captive retention, the fronting carrier responds. A single catastrophic loss does not land on the member.
Whatever reserve is left after claims stays eligible for distribution back to the member. Assessments, if they are ever needed, are capped and gradual rather than open ended.
Four programs, one set of rules.
Each program has its own structure, partners, and eligibility floor. What they share is the model: member owned, loss sensitive, and built so that the agent keeps the relationship.
ASCEND
Workers comp, general liability, and auto liability for well run commercial accounts.
- $250,000 minimum premium
- $500,000 captive retention
- North Carolina domicile
ELITE
Self funded groups that are done absorbing double digit renewals on a traditional plan.
- 26 enrolled minimum
- $25,000 specific deductible and up
- Bermuda domicile
Oil & Gas
Specialized P&C for energy sector risks, with a renewable energy extension.
- Published target class list
- Region specific appetite
- Renewables included
Transportation
Starting narrow on purpose, with acceptability standards that are standards, not guidelines.
- Three launch classes
- ELD and telematics required
- Expansion classes mapped
Check a class code
Type a NAICS or SIC code and see which program it lands in, whether it is a target class, and whether anything about it is excluded.
One code in, every program checked.
Enter a NAICS code, a SIC code, or a word like flatbed. You get a verdict for ASCEND and for every industry program at once, so you can see where an account actually belongs.
Check a class across every program
ASCEND colour codes 1,001 classes green, yellow, or red. The industry programs publish their own target lists. This checks all of them at once and tells you where the account belongs.
Who fits, and who does not.
Captives reward discipline. The accounts that do well are the ones where losses respond to management attention. The ones that struggle are the ones hoping for a cheaper number.
A good fit looks like
- Premium above the program floor, and stable enough to plan around
- Five years of loss history that can actually be produced
- Losses driven by frequency and behavior, not by one freak event
- An owner who will sit through a loss control conversation
- A three to five year mindset rather than a one renewal decision
A poor fit looks like
- Shopping purely on price with no interest in the structure
- Loss runs that cannot be produced or that keep changing
- A class on an excluded list, or exposure the program cannot reinsure
- Cash flow too tight to fund collateral and a participation fee
- An owner who wants to be told the answer rather than see the math
From first look to onboarding.
You do not need to memorize this. We walk you through it, and you stay in front of the client the entire time.
Run the numbers
Use the calculator to see what the account could keep. No submission required, no commitment.
Bring us the account
Book a call and walk us through it. You get a straight read on fit before anyone does real work.
Pre-qualification
We check the account against program eligibility and confirm the data we need.
The CLEAR report
A full economic analysis of what the captive would look like for this specific client.
STEP risk review
Roughly two weeks. Underwriting, loss control, and the risk profile get worked properly.
The offer
Roughly three weeks. Terms, funding, and collateral laid out so the client can decide.
Docs and funding
Documents signed and funds wired about a week before the target bind date.
Onboarding
Bind and onboard, in as little as twelve weeks from the first call.
One rule worth knowing
Agent of record is settled by whoever first provides complete data: five years of policies, audits, and loss runs. Not incumbency, not who called first, and not who has the longest relationship. If you want the account, send it complete.
The ones agents actually ask.
Bring us an account. We will tell you straight.
Run the numbers first, then book a call. You keep the client and the broker of record relationship. We handle the technical work behind it.