A good commercial renewal starts 90 to 120 days before expiration, collects what has changed in the client's business, and compares the renewal offer with the expiring policy line by line. The goal is simple: no coverage change, and no new exposure, reaches the client without someone pointing it out.
Renewals are where quiet changes become claims. Guidance from E&O carriers is consistent: review the policy with the client at renewal, point out any coverage changes, and do not rely on the carrier to flag them.
Step 1: Pull renewals onto a list at least 90 days out
Run a report from your agency management system every week for policies expiring in the next 120 days. Assign each one an owner and a target date for the renewal file. Accounts that need remarketing or specialty markets go on the list earlier.
Step 2: Build the renewal file
For each account, collect:
- Current loss runs from every carrier on the account
- The expiring policy, forms and endorsements
- Current exposure data: payroll, revenue, locations, vehicles, property values
- Open claims and any certificates or contracts that carry insurance requirements
A complete file is what lets the account manager spend their time on advice instead of chasing paperwork.
Step 3: Ask the client what changed
Send a short, specific questionnaire rather than "anything new?". Ask about new locations, new services, new contracts with insurance requirements, changes in headcount, new vehicles and any acquisitions. Record the answers in the file, including "no changes", with the date.
Step 4: Decide whether to remarket
Use the loss runs, the carrier's renewal indication and the client's changes to decide whether to remarket. If you do, build the submissions early. A rushed remarket is where coverage gets mismatched between the old and new carriers.
Step 5: Compare the renewal offer with the expiring policy
Put the renewal and the expiring policy side by side, the same way you would check a policy against the quote. Look for changed limits, deductibles, forms, exclusions and endorsements. Anything that narrows coverage goes in writing to the client with the alternatives.
Step 6: Present, bind and check
Present the renewal with a clear note of what changed. Once bound, check the issued renewal policy against what was bound, and log the renewal as complete only after that check.
Where AI agents fit
Steps 2 and 5 are mostly assembly and comparison. An agent can pull loss runs, gather prior terms and exposure data into the renewal file, and compare the renewal offer against the expiring policy. The account manager keeps the client conversation and the recommendation. In the Agentic MSP servicing pack, a renewal is billed when the renewal file is complete in your agency management system.