What Is a Broker of Record Letter for Church Insurance (and When to Use One)
If your church has ever been frustrated with an insurance agent who is slow to respond, cannot explain your coverage, or disappears until renewal, you have probably wondered whether you are stuck. You are not. There is a simple, well-established tool that lets a church change who represents it on an insurance policy without changing the policy itself. It is called a Broker of Record letter, and most church leaders have never heard of it.
What a Broker of Record letter actually is
A Broker of Record letter, often shortened to BOR letter, is a short signed document from your church that tells the insurance carrier: from now on, this broker represents us on this policy. It transfers the servicing and advocacy rights on your existing coverage from your current agent to the new broker you choose. The carrier stays the same. The policy stays the same. The premium stays the same. The only thing that changes is who manages the account on your behalf and who goes to bat for you at renewal.
Think of it the way you would think of changing which financial advisor manages an account you already hold. You are not liquidating anything or opening a new account. You are reassigning who has the authority to service and advise on what already exists.
What a Broker of Record letter does not do
This is where most of the confusion lives, so it is worth being precise. A BOR letter does not cancel your policy. It does not switch your carrier. It does not trigger a re-quote or a new application. It does not create a gap in coverage, and it does not restart your policy term. Your limits, deductibles, endorsements, and effective dates all carry forward exactly as they are.
Because nothing about the underlying coverage changes, there is no underwriting review, no lapse, and no risk that a claim in progress is affected. That is precisely why the BOR letter exists: it is the low-friction way for a policyholder to change representation without disrupting protection.
When a church should consider using one
A Broker of Record letter is the right tool when you are reasonably comfortable with your coverage and carrier but not with the person or agency handling it. Common triggers include an agent who does not return calls, an agency that never reviews the policy against how the church has actually grown, a renewal that arrives with an increase and no explanation, or a church that simply wants an independent broker who can shop the whole market at the next renewal rather than a captive agent who can only offer one carrier.
Imagine a growing congregation that added a preschool and a second building over the last few years but is still insured under a program written before either existed. The coverage may be fine for now, but no one has looked at it with fresh eyes. A BOR letter lets a new broker step in, review the whole program, and manage it going forward, all without touching the policy mid-term.
What changes after you sign it
Once the carrier processes the letter, your new broker becomes your point of contact for service questions, certificates of insurance, coverage changes, and claims support. More importantly, that broker now owns the renewal. When the policy comes up for renewal, an independent broker can market it to multiple church carriers, compare the options against your actual exposures, and negotiate on your behalf. That is the real value: you gain an advocate whose job is to keep testing whether your program is still the right fit.
How to put a Broker of Record letter in place
The process is short. You choose the broker you want representing the church. The broker prepares the letter on your church's letterhead with the policy details filled in. An authorized officer of the church signs it. The broker submits it to the carrier, which typically honors it after a short waiting period. From your side, it is one signature and a few minutes.
If you would like to see how this works in practice, our change your broker page walks through the BOR option in plain language.
Common questions about Broker of Record letters
Does it cost anything? No. Appointing a new broker by BOR letter does not add cost to your policy. The broker is compensated by the carrier through the existing commission built into your premium, so your church pays the same either way.
Will my coverage lapse? No. The policy continues uninterrupted. Nothing about your limits or effective dates changes.
What happens to my current agent? They are removed from servicing this policy once the letter is processed. You are not required to explain or justify the change.
Can I do it in the middle of my policy term? Yes. A BOR letter can be submitted at any time, not only at renewal, though many churches use it a couple of months before renewal so the new broker can prepare to market the account.
If you would like a second opinion on whether your current broker arrangement is serving your church well
Contact Hale Street Insurance at 978.712.0111 or [email protected] for a free church insurance review. You can also visit our church insurance page or request a quote to get started.
Jake Lubinski is the founder of Hale Street Insurance and a licensed insurance broker with years of church board and stewardship experience. Based in Boxford, MA he works with churches throughout Massachusetts and the US to build insurance and risk programs designed around how ministry actually operates. Reach Jake at [email protected] or 978.712.0111.
Related reading: What an Independent Church Insurance Broker Actually Does | Church Mutual Renewal Increase or Non-Renewal: What to Do | How to Choose a Church Insurance Broker | Best Church Insurance Companies: How the Top Carriers Compare
