Use dotted terms for definitions. You can also browse the glossary.
Before you decide
- Normalize values, dates and coverage before comparing totals.
- Shared limits can change retained risk.
- Administrative simplicity is only one part of the decision.
Build a location-level baseline
Record each property’s value basis, occupied use, building condition, premium, fees, deductible and liability/income terms. Identify new or sold locations and changes in values. Comparing two total invoices without this bridge can misidentify growth as a rate increase or reduced coverage as efficiency.
Request a consistent submission for competing arrangements. Explain unusual properties rather than silently removing them from one proposal. Ask how a difficult location affects terms elsewhere in a shared program.
Use a cost bridge
| Component | Example of a change | Review |
|---|---|---|
| Exposure | New building or higher supported reconstruction value | Compare like locations and values |
| Price | Premium changes for equivalent terms | Actual quoted annual cost |
| Coverage | Different roof basis or catastrophe limit | Retained-loss difference |
| Administration | Fees, installments, audit or reporting | Total obligation and workload |
Worked scenario: misleading totals
An old portfolio costs $20,000. A new offer costs $21,000 but adds a building separately quoted at $3,000 on comparable terms. On a simple matched-location basis, the new offer allocates $18,000 to the original set, a $2,000 difference. That is an illustrative allocation, not evidence of a market discount.
Then check whether catastrophe limits, deductible treatment or valuation changed. A cost bridge identifies the question; it does not establish equivalence by itself.
Test concentration and exit costs
Run one event across nearby buildings and record applicable retentions and shared limits. Review minimum premium, location deletion, acquisition reporting and cancellation provisions. A lower total may have less flexibility when you sell a property.
Keep the approved comparison with the renewal documents. Do not assume bundling automatically creates savings or that every partner can place the same portfolio structure.
Sources & scope
- Travelers: Commercial property insurance
Carrier description of physical assets and optional exposures; not a universal unit-count eligibility boundary.
- Travelers: Calculating coinsurance
Carrier explanation of a property coinsurance clause when one applies. Not every form contains this condition.
Sources checked October 24, 2026. General descriptions do not replace the policy, endorsements, declarations or an insurer’s coverage determination. Examples are hypothetical unless explicitly identified otherwise.
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