SearchDistribution & Broking

Carrier Appetite Search

Carrier appetite search that shows the guide page behind every market

Out-of-appetite submissions cut, every market tied to its guide page.

See one case, screen by screen ↓
demo1.8sto check 14 markets against 212 appetite rules from 31 sources
demo48sfrom a plain-words description to a saved market plan
demo3marketsmoved from Will not to Writes it when one fact — sprinklers — was added
target13%of submissions declined as out of appetite, down from 38%
In short

What is Carrier Appetite Search?

A way to find which carriers, MGAs and wholesale markets will write a given risk before you submit it. Carrier Appetite Search reads your markets’ appetite guides, bulletins, portal pages and underwriter emails into rules, tests a risk described in plain words against all of them, and sorts every market into Writes it, Maybe or Will not — each with the passage and page that put it there.

How to choose AI solutions for insurance →

Updated

The problem

Why so many commercial submissions go to markets that will never quote

A typical agency is appointed with eight to fifteen carriers, MGAs and wholesalers, and each one says what it will write in its own way: a PDF appetite guide re-issued every quarter, a portal page, a bulletin, a line in an underwriter’s email. When a commercial account is non-renewed or comes up for marketing, the account manager has to work out which of those markets will actually quote it.

Today that is memory, a few portals and an afternoon of PDFs. Account managers fall back on the markets they know, send submissions that come straight back as out of appetite, and lose days waiting for declines — while the renewal date gets closer and every unneeded decline costs something with that underwriter. And when the account has to go to surplus lines, the admitted declines have to be in the file.

typical≈60%of commercial submissions go unquoted
typical71%of agents struggle to understand carrier appetite
demo38%of the agency’s submissions declined as out of appetite, January to April
Where a market plan’s hours goestimated
By hand3 days
With the solution0.6 days
  • Reading the account file into risk facts0.5 → 0.1 d
  • Checking carrier portals and appetite guides1.3 → 0.1 d
  • Checking underwriter emails for appetite changes0.5 → 0.1 d
  • Choosing markets and the order to send0.3 → 0.1 d
  • Listing what to send and writing cover notes0.5 → 0.3 d

Estimated split for one commercial account, in hours, by hand and with the solution.

How it works

How a risk finds its markets

Six agents read the risk and 31 appetite sources and sort every market; the account manager chooses and sends.

What comes in
Risk and sources in31 sources · guides, bulletins, underwriter emails, account file
Agents at work
Risk readerplain words → facts
Then
Appetite guide reader
Underwriter note reader
Then
Appetite matcherWrites it · Maybe · Will not
Hit-ratio ranker
Then
Market plan writerplan + cover notes
A person decides
Account managerchooses markets and sends
What comes out
Cited market list
Refusals with reasons
Cover notes
One case, step by step

One non-renewal, from plain words to a saved market plan

Pemberton Mutual has non-renewed Hollis Creek Cabinetry, a cabinet maker in Hickory, North Carolina — it is leaving woodworking in the state. The package expires 1 December, 50 days out. Here is what happens next, screen by screen, in the working solution.

  1. 01Monday morning

    The accounts that need new markets, non-renewals first

    Renee Okafor · Commercial account manager

    Renee’s list shows every commercial account expiring in the next 120 days that needs marketing, and why. Hollis Creek Cabinetry is at the top: package — property and general liability — expiring 1 Dec 2026, $48,600 expiring premium, non-renewed by Pemberton Mutual on 2 Oct.

  2. 0250 days out

    She describes the risk in plain words

    Renee Okafor · Commercial account manager

    “Cabinet maker, Hickory NC. $11.2M sales, 46 staff, spray booth and dust collection. One $64K dust-collector fire in 2024. Property and GL from Dec 1. 44,000 sq ft joisted masonry, built 1986.” The risk reader turns it into facts — NAICS 337110, protection class 3, TIV $7.6M — each chip marked with where it came from: her text, or the ACORD 140, loss runs and loss letter on file.

    “14 markets checked against 212 appetite rules from 31 sources · 1.8 s” — and “1 fact not stated: sprinklers”.

  3. 031.8 seconds later

    Writes it, Maybe, Will not — each with the passage that put it there

    Appetite matcher

    Two markets write it: Ridgeback Underwriters’ wood-products program and, through Ferrow & Kade Wholesale, Copperline Specialty. Three need a referral — Halvorsen Mutual wants the loss letter and corrective action for a fire in the past 36 months. Nine will not. Every market on the board carries its guide passage with the page, the agency’s own record with that market, and how it is reached. Open the page tab and the guide opens on the highlighted passage.

    Granite Shore Mutual — “Knocked out by Sprinklers: not stated” · 1 fact away · Q4 2026 guide, p. 7.

  4. 04One click

    A Will not names the fact that knocked it out

    Appetite matcher

    Open Quillon Mutual and every rule is tested against Hollis Creek: class met, state met, construction failed — “Frame and joisted masonry buildings over 20,000 sq ft are not accepted for manufacturing” (Q3 2026 guide, p. 6). The page shows the agency’s 2026 history with Quillon and the underwriter, and an account manager can ask for an override from here.

    Unstated facts are never read in the risk’s favour — sprinklers not stated is read as none.

  5. 05Two words

    She adds “with sprinklers”, and the board re-sorts

    Renee Okafor · Commercial account manager

    The plant is sprinklered, so Renee adds it to the description. The risk reader re-reads it and three markets slide from Will not to Writes it, each flagged with what moved it: Granite Shore Mutual, Wrenfield Fire & Marine and Ashgrove Casualty. The board now reads 5 · 3 · 6.

    “3 markets moved to Writes it — Granite Shore Mutual, Ashgrove Casualty, Wrenfield Fire & Marine”

  6. 06Checked

    Every rule met, and the newest source counted

    Appetite matcher

    Granite Shore now meets all five of its rules — class, state, sprinklers, losses and total insured value, where the Q4 bulletin of 1 Oct raised the woodworking limit from $10M to $15M per location. Wrenfield is in because Marcus Doyle’s email of 18 Sep — back in woodworking in the Carolinas from 1 October, sprinklered only — supersedes its 2025 guide.

  7. 07A few clicks

    Four markets in, one back-up, refusals kept

    Renee Okafor · Commercial account manager

    Renee adds Granite Shore, Ridgeback, Ashgrove and Wrenfield to the submission list and keeps Copperline Specialty as the surplus-lines back-up, which goes out only after the admitted refusals are on file. The list keeps count: 4 markets, 1 back-up, 6 refusals kept with their passages as her diligent search.

  8. 0848 seconds

    The market plan, with what each market needs

    Market plan writer

    Saved to the account file: for each market in order, the passage it fits and what to send — ACORD 125, 126 and 140, five-year loss runs, Granite Shore’s woodworking supplement GS-WW-3 and photos of the dust collection, Ridgeback’s program application and the spark detection service record. Terms are asked for by 13 Nov.

    “Description to plan in 48 seconds.”

  9. 09Drafted

    A cover note to each underwriter — Renee sends it

    Market plan writer

    The note to Lena Marsh at Granite Shore quotes the passage that makes Hollis Creek a target class, sets out the risk — 100% sprinklered, ducted dust collection with spark detection installed after the March 2024 fire — and lists what is enclosed. Renee reviews it and sends it herself.

    “You review and send — the agents never send.”

  10. 10Before surplus lines

    The diligent search, on file and signed

    Dale Wynne · Agency principal, E&O lead

    The plan lists every market that will not write the risk, the fact that knocked it out, the passage and its source — 5 admitted refusals, where the agency’s setting asks for 3. North Carolina wants a diligent search among admitted insurers before a surplus-lines placement (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 58-21-15). Dale signs before anything goes to Copperline through Graham Pell at Ferrow & Kade.

Who it’s for

Built for everyone who places a commercial account.

The same non-renewal, seen by the five people who carry it — what their week looked like, and what it looks like now.

RO
Renee OkaforCommercial account manager, Calder & Wynne Insurance
Commercial account manager
Before
Knows eight markets by heart, though the agency is appointed with fourteen; works out the rest from portals and PDFs.
Now
Describes the risk, corrects one fact, and has a cited market list and a saved plan in under a minute.
TB
Tom BrandtCommercial producer
Producer
Before
Asks who will quote the account, and by when — and waits for the answer.
Now
Sees the plan with every market in order, what it needs and the date terms are due, and approves the market order.
IS
Imani ShawPlacement specialist
Placement specialist
Before
Hears about declines the agency did not need, after they have cost something with the underwriter.
Now
Keeps the markets and sources; a Will not is overridden only by her, with a reason kept on the account file.
KL
Keisha LamMarketing coordinator
Marketing coordinator
Before
Keeps guides, bulletins and underwriter emails current for fourteen markets, each in its own format, by hand.
Now
Uploads guides and emails to one library; guides older than 120 days are flagged so she can chase the current one.
DW
Dale WynneAgency principal · E&O lead
Agency principal
Before
Wants the admitted declines in the file before any account goes to surplus lines.
Now
Signs the diligent search from the plan, with every refusal, its reason and its passage already on file.
Built on the engine

6 agents. Each with one job, and hard limits.

Six agents read the risk and 31 appetite sources and sort every market; the account manager chooses and sends.

Risk reader

Turns a plain-words description, the ACORD 125 and 140 and the loss runs into risk facts — class, state, size, building, protection, operations, losses, lines — each with where it came from.

  • Never guesses a fact — an unstated fact is shown as “not stated” and read the cautious way
  • Never infers a protection fact
  • Every fact names its source
Appetite guide reader

Reads each market’s appetite guide, bulletins and portal pages into rules — class stance, limits, protection requirements — each with its page and date.

  • Never keeps a rule without its page
  • Verbatim passages only
  • Flags a guide older than 120 days
Underwriter note reader

Reads underwriter emails and market notes into rules and marks which older passage they supersede.

  • Never treats a note as appetite without its sender and date
  • Ignores pricing chatter and anything not about appetite
Appetite matcher

Tests every rule against the risk facts, sorts each market into Writes it, Maybe or Will not, and names the deciding fact. Re-runs whenever a fact changes.

  • Never puts a market in Writes it without a cited passage that names the class
  • Unstated facts read the cautious way
Hit-ratio ranker

Orders the markets by fit and by the agency’s own quotes and declines over 24 months.

  • Never hides a market because of rank
  • Surplus lines ranked after admitted
Market plan writer

Drafts the market plan, what each market needs, the diligent-search record and the cover note to each underwriter.

  • Never sends a submission or contacts an underwriter
  • Surplus lines only after the admitted refusals and the principal’s sign-off
Account manager

Chooses and sends; principal signs surplus lines. The agents propose; a named person decides.

Ask in plain words

Ask why a market is on the board

Ask why a market is on the board, what changed in appetite, or have it draft the note. Every answer cites the guide, bulletin or email it rests on.

Why is Quillon Mutual a Will not?

Construction. Quillon’s manufacturing guide says “frame and joisted masonry buildings over 20,000 sq ft are not accepted for manufacturing”, and Hollis Creek is 44,000 sq ft of joisted masonry. Its bulletin of 28 Aug restates it. Sprinklers do not change that — only a masonry non-combustible or better building would.

Do we have enough admitted refusals to go to Copperline?

Yes. North Carolina allows surplus lines only after a diligent search among admitted insurers actually writing the class. The plan holds 5 admitted refusals, each with its passage — for example Northwind prohibits cabinet manufacturing and Elmstead declines any fire loss in five years. Your setting asks for 3. Dale Wynne signs the record before anything goes to Graham Pell at Ferrow & Kade.

What changed in woodworking appetite this quarter?

Three changes matter for Hollis Creek. Wrenfield is back in woodworking in the Carolinas from 1 October — sprinklered only, TIV to $10M — per Marcus Doyle’s email of 18 Sep, which supersedes the exclusion in its 2025 guide. Granite Shore raised its woodworking TIV limit from $10M to $15M in the Q4 guide. Ridgeback raised its program sales limit to $25M.

Draft the cover note to Granite Shore

Drafted for Lena Marsh. It quotes the passage that makes Hollis Creek a target class — “a target class in all five states when the building is 100% sprinklered” — and attaches the woodworking supplement and the dust-collection photos she asked for on 2 Oct. Review it and send it yourself.

Every screen

The working solution, as it ships.

13 screens from the working solution, on its sample data. Pick one to see it large.

The searchThe risk in plain words, the facts read from it and the account file, and every market sorted into Writes it, Maybe and Will not.
The guide pageOpen the page tab on any market and the appetite guide opens on the passage that placed the market.
The live re-sortAdd “with sprinklers” and three markets move from Will not to Writes it, each flagged with what moved it.
A market that writes itEvery rule tested against the risk, the guide with margin notes, and the agency’s history with the market.
A market that will notThe fact that knocked it out, the passage that says so, and a way to ask for an override with a reason.
The submission listMarkets in the order to send, the surplus-lines back-up, and the refusals kept as the diligent search.
The market planWhat each market needs — forms, supplements, loss runs — and the date terms are due.
The cover noteDrafted for each underwriter from the plan and the passage; the account manager reviews and sends.
The diligent searchEvery market that will not write it, the fact, the passage and the source — signed by the agency principal before surplus lines.
Accounts to marketCommercial accounts expiring in the next 120 days that need new markets, non-renewals first, with plan status.
The appetite libraryEvery guide, bulletin, underwriter email and portal page, what changed this quarter, and which guides are stale.
Quotes and declinesOut-of-appetite declines by month, why markets said no, and the hit ratio by market.
Your agency’s rulesCautious reading, stale-guide flag, hit-ratio window, admitted refusals before surplus lines, markets per submission and overrides.
Governance

Built for placements you can defend: cited, chosen by a person, on file.

Every market cites its passageEach market on the board carries the passage, page and date that placed it — guide, bulletin, underwriter email or portal page — and opens on the highlighted text.
Newest source wins, the old one stays visibleAn underwriter email or bulletin later than the guide replaces the passage it contradicts, and the superseded passage is still shown. Guides older than 120 days are flagged.
Unstated facts are read the cautious waySprinklers, spark detection or loss history not stated are read as none, so the board errs toward Will not rather than sending a submission that comes back declined.
The agents never sendAgents suggest; the account manager chooses the markets and sends. No agent contacts an underwriter.
Overrides need a person and a reasonA Will not is overridden only by the placement specialist, with a reason kept on the account file.
A diligent search before surplus linesSurplus-lines markets stay back-ups until the admitted refusals are recorded with their passages and the agency principal signs. Every search, re-sort, plan, override and sign-off is on the activity trail.
Configuration

Your agency’s rules, not ours

How the search reads a risk, which markets it may suggest, and who may override a refusal — all settings.

SettingDefaultChoose from
Read unstated facts the cautious wayOnOn · Off
Use the account file (ACORD 125/140, loss runs, loss letters)OnOn · Off
Ask before re-sortingOff — re-sorts as soon as a fact changesOn · Off
Flag a guide as stale after120 days30 to 365 days, in steps of 30
History window for hit ratio24 months6 to 60 months, in steps of 6
Admitted refusals before surplus lines3 markets1 to 5 markets
Most markets per submission5 markets2 to 8 markets
Who may override a Will notPlacement specialistPlacement specialist · Agency principal · Any account manager
Connections

Works with the sources you already have

Carrier appetite guides and bulletinsevery rule kept with its page and date
The shared appetite inboxunderwriter emails and market notes
Carrier portal pagesclass lookups and appetite pages
The account fileACORD 125 and 140, loss runs, loss letters
Quotes and declines by carrierthe agency’s own history, for the hit ratio
Agency appointment listdirect, program contract or through the wholesaler
What it changes

The difference, in numbers.

Every figure is labelled: a target the solution is built to, an estimate, a typical published result, or a proven one.

target
13%
of submissions declined as out of appetite, down from 38%
Before38%
With agents13%
target
< 1min
from a plain-words risk to a cited market list
48 seconds
Hollis Creek, description to saved plan
typical
60%
of commercial submissions go unquoted today
TodayWith agents

“demo” = seen in the working solution, on its sample agency data · “target” = the design goal, measured in the live solution · “estimated” = our estimate · “typical” = published figures (IVANS research via QuoteSweep — about 60% of commercial submissions go unquoted; First Connect 2025 State of the Industry — 71% of agents struggle to understand carrier appetite). The diligent-search rule cited is N.C. Gen. Stat. § 58-21-15. People, agencies, carriers and accounts named on this page are fictional — characters and sample data in the working solution.

Questions

What agencies ask us.

What is carrier appetite search?

A way to find which carriers, MGAs and wholesale markets will write a given risk before you submit it. Carrier Appetite Search reads your markets’ appetite guides, bulletins, portal pages and underwriter emails into rules, tests a risk described in plain words against all of them, and sorts every market into Writes it, Maybe or Will not — each with the passage and page that put it there.

How does it know a carrier’s current appetite?

The appetite guide reader keeps every rule with its page and effective date, and the underwriter note reader reads the shared appetite inbox. When an email or bulletin is newer than the guide, it replaces the passage it contradicts and the old passage stays visible. Guides older than 120 days are flagged so the marketing coordinator can ask for the current one.

What happens when a fact is missing from the description?

It is shown as “not stated” and read the cautious way — sprinklers not stated is read as none — so the board errs toward Will not. Every Will not names the fact that knocked the market out, and when you correct it the board re-sorts in front of you.

Does it send submissions to carriers?

No. The agents suggest markets and draft the plan and cover notes; the account manager chooses the markets and sends. No agent contacts an underwriter, and a Will not can be overridden only by the placement specialist, with a reason.

Does it help with a surplus-lines diligent search?

Yes. The saved plan keeps every admitted refusal with its passage and source as the diligent-search record. Surplus-lines markets stay back-ups until the number of admitted refusals in your settings is reached and the agency principal signs.

Does it use our own quote and decline history?

Yes. The hit-ratio ranker orders the markets by fit and by the agency’s own quotes and declines over a window you set — 24 months by default. It never hides a market because of its rank.

Which sources does it work with?

Carrier appetite guides and bulletins, underwriter emails and market notes, carrier portal pages, the account file (ACORD 125 and 140, loss runs and loss letters), your past quotes and declines by carrier, and your agency appointment list.

How long does it take to go live?

The Agentic Solution Engine builds and deploys it from your requirements and documents — your appetite guides, underwriter emails, appointment list and past submissions — and it goes live once every quality gate has passed. We will walk you through it on your own accounts first.

See it on
your accounts.

We’ll run Carrier Appetite Search on your own appetite guides, underwriter emails and a few accounts you are marketing now.