Insurers base business insurance premiums on the insurer's exposure to risk. The risk can be from the nature of the business or activity and from the relative size of the number of businesses in the insurer's risk pool. The larger the number of insureds, the easier it is for the insurer to spread risk and lower premiums among similarly situated businesses. This is one of the arguments for a "one payor," mandatory, health insurance system.
One way your business can look to lower premiums is membership in a professional organization or business group that offers insurance as a benefit of membership.
For example, using my firm as an example, it would be prohibitively expensive for our firm to obtain comprehensive health insurance because of our size. However, as a member of the Ohio Bar Association, our fim can work with the OSBA Insurance Agency which "is a full-service agency that offers OSBA members a wide variety of insurance options tailored to meet individual firm needs. Coverage areas include health, dental, vision, long-term care insurance, term life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment insurance." Membership gives us the opportunity to be insured at rates much lower than individual or small group insurance on our own. We become a "group" as large as all of the members of the OSBA.
The same holds true to other types of business insurance. Liability insurance offered through trade groups is often much lower and, in some cases, the only affordable way to obtain such coverage.
Every conceivable industry and business has a trade or professional organization that can point you in the direction of insurance. Dog groomers can secure liability and medical insurance options at the National Dog Groomers Association. Certified public accountants can join the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and gain access to AICPA Insurance Programs. The point is, that with a little bit of research, one can find a professional or trade group that can offer the benefit of having a large number of insureds buying from one insurer and reducing premiums.
In some cases, the group has sample risk management programs, forums, and other resources which can assist the business owner in maintaining lower premiums. Best practices and procedures and examples, as well as expert advice, are also available.
Of course, membership fees are required. So it is best to ask, in advance of joining, what discounts on premiums one can expect. A local trade group in my home town caters to large organizations and, while health insurance discounts range in the 30% range with membership, the membership fees cancel out any true discount in premiums. There are benefits to membership other than insurance discounts, so you will want to do some research on whether the costs of membership with these benefits and insurance discounts makes sense for your business.
Finally, you will want to find out whether the insurance program or discount is truly a discount or merely a referral to "associate" members selling insurance products. In the CPA example above, the program is offered through AON as a stand alone program devoted to AICPA members. Such service is significantly more valuable than a referral to your local State Farm agent from a Chamber of Commerce (no offense to either - just an example).
While looking online I found a list of "associations on the net" offered by the Internet Public Library. That can be a good place to start your search.
