C&C’s client retention rate backs up what we have always known: that clients rarely leave us once they experience the level of service we regard as standard. And of the 2.3% that don’t renew their relationship with us, many will have been lost to mergers and acquisitions, or are no longer trading.
Just to put this into perspective, it’s widely accepted that, in the UK, commercial insurance brokers typically retain 80–90% of their clients, which in itself is encouraging for the sector. But our client retention rate takes it to the next level. Why is this?
As is often the case when analysing success, many factors are at play. Two key reasons for such high rates of client loyalty (let’s say it as it is) are the deep client relationships we nurture and our expertise in a number of niche sectors.
Putting The Client At The Centre Of Everything We Do
This sits at the core of the C&C ethos. We are unapologetic about repeating ourselves – we are NOT a call centre. While the industry propensity is to move towards Live Chats and Claims Portals, our teams take the time to understand our clients, their businesses, goals and their challenges. All our clients have a friendly and empathetic, dedicated point of contact, so they never get that sinking feeling of having to start at square one when it comes to discussing their renewals or claims.
Deep Industry Specialisation Across Multiple Sectors
Over our 50 years, we’ve built up a huge volume of knowledge and experience across many niche sectors: Transport, Haulage & Logistics, Life Sciences, Landlord & Property Investment and the Motor Trade, to name a few.
We also have entire divisions specialising in Trade Credit Insurance, Landlord & Property Insurance, Career-ending Injury Insurance for professional athletes, as well as a Private Clients division for high and ultra-high net worth individuals. We’re proud to be providing cover for international sports stars, entertainers and celebrities, all of whom are household names. Not that you’ll ever hear us share them. We understand how much our clients value their privacy and our discretion.
Of course, we still have considerable experience in the wider, more generalised commercial sector, but our unrivalled understanding of these niches means that clients value the advice tailored to their specific risks, which builds trust and translates into loyalty.
Our In-House Claims Team Takes The Headwind
Should the worst happen and a client needs to make a claim, our in-house claims team is the bridge between them and the insurer and will be with them every step of the way. In fact, we lead the process in such stormy times and manage almost all interactions with insurers and loss adjusters. We will challenge, chase up, and champion a client case on their behalf. Having our team in their corner at such a difficult time brings immense peace of mind to our clients.
Proactive Ongoing Account Reviews
In addition to managing our clients’ claims processes, we also monitor claims trends and experiences. We look for patterns and drill down into those patterns and incident types. If we can begin to identify the cause of some claims, we can begin to manage the risks associated with those causes, which in turn can feed into premium calculations at renewal time. These risk audits, incorporated with training where necessary, translate into tangible financial benefits for our clients.
Our Teams are Fully Accessible For Clients
And not just because of our national presence and network of offices across the mainland UK: Bristol, Chester, Dumfries, Greater Manchester, Leeds, London, Newcastle, Newport, Nottingham and Solihull. Having people on the ground over a wide geographical area certainly helps. But it’s more of a mindset that makes us truly accessible to our clients. Our teams take their clients’ welfare seriously, so it’s not unusual for them to take out-of-hours calls. Likewise, client visits are not uncommon, especially when working through a challenge.
And It’s Not Just Our Clients Who Are Loyal
Despite significant recruitment over recent years (we’re now over 160 people in the C&C family), 40% have been with us for five years or more! This level of staff loyalty is incredible and greatly appreciated by colleagues and clients alike. It means retained knowledge and understanding of client histories and cases, which, as we know, makes client lives easier and helps develop our newer and younger recruits.
It also means that we’re doing something very right. If people want to stay with us, it speaks volumes about the culture here at C&C.
Ray Harris, Operations Director at C&C, says: “When we started looking into these figures, we felt confident that they would reflect what we already instinctively knew – that we enjoyed high levels of client loyalty. But 97.7% blew us away! On the one hand, it’s just a number. But on the other, it reflects everything about C&C that clients value. It’s probably one of the most important metrics in understanding how good a company is at providing a service.”
Malcolm Cooke, MD of C&C, says: “To say that this figure has put a smile on my face is an understatement. I’m immensely grateful for the team here – the whole C&C family, in recognising and maintaining the family values initiated by my Dad, Pete. It’s actually very humbling to think that 50 years on since he founded C&C, even though so much has changed during that time, that our clients still value his original core philosophy… to always put the client first. We live by it, and a 97.7% client retention rate shows that they value it.
I’d also like to acknowledge our wonderful clients, and to thank them for being so loyal to us; some of whom have been with us for over 35 years; one has been with us for 40 years! Our mission is to continue making it difficult for you to find a reason to leave us!”
If you’d like to enjoy the peace of mind enjoyed by our commercial and globally famous clients, contact us at info@cc-insure.com or on 0161 406 4800 for a no obligation conversation about your current cover. One of our friendly, knowledgeable and solution-focused team will be in touch to see how we could help you to reduce your exposure and drive down your total cost of risk.
