Your claim was denied
The carrier said no. That is a position, not a verdict — here's what to do before you accept it.
A denial letter cites a provision. Whether that provision actually reaches your facts is a different question — and the person best placed to press it is not the broker who placed the policy, and not the carrier who wrote the letter.
Before you accept it, three moves
What to do while the position is still open.
In this order. The first two are documents you're entitled to and should already have; the third is a read by someone with no stake in the answer.
Now — get the denial in writing, with the exact language cited.
This week — pull the complete policy, not the declarations.
Before you accept it — get an independent read.
The part nobody explains
What most buyers don't know
The letter was written by the carrier's claims department, whose job is to apply the policy as it reads to them. That is their role, and they do it carefully. Nobody else in the transaction has the role of reading the same words in your favour — unless you give someone that job.
Your broker is in an awkward position on a denial. They placed the policy, they hold an ongoing relationship with the carrier, and the denial may point at a gap in what they placed. Their advocacy has limits that have nothing to do with their competence.
Beyond this one claim: a denial is the most concrete evidence you will ever get about whether the program was designed for your actual exposures. It is a finding. Whether it changes the next program depends entirely on whether anyone writes it down and carries it into the renewal.
What actually happens
Here's what happens when someone independent reads it
The letter gets read against the full form.
The cited clause, its exceptions, its conditions — and the facts of your claim, as they are.
Where the carrier's reading is the only reading, you know.
And you know what to change so the next program doesn't have the same hole.
Where it isn't, you have a position.
In writing, with the form language beside it — and the finding goes into the blueprint for the next renewal.
Looking costs you nothing, and nobody finds out.
We work only from documents you already have. Your broker and your carriers are never contacted, and the analysis is free — the fee, when there is one, is a flat fee quoted plainly in the first conversation.
Private by default
- Nothing is shared with your broker or your carrier. Ever.
- No changes to your program. Looking is not switching.
- You decide who sees the findings — including whether we ever speak again.
You're holding a denial for a claim you thought was covered.
Bring the letter and the policy to a 15-minute review: what the cited provision actually says, what the letter left out, and what is still worth doing.
Fifteen minutes with Michael Stoop, our founder. Nothing to prepare — bring the question you can't get a straight answer to.
Or call us now — 347.252.6150
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Send the policy you are least sure about. We read it against how you operate and send back the three findings with the most at stake, each tied to its page.
Run your own loss pick
Premium and losses in, your ratio against the 50% line out — one year is enough. Nothing is submitted to anyone.
Walk a full engagement
A sample account, start to finish — the blueprint, the gaps, the scored quotes, the decision. Judge the work before the pitch.
- Flat annual fee — never a percentage of your premium
- Broker commission disclosed on every quote, in writing
- No contingency payments, overrides, or profit-sharing