McDowell Insurance Helps RIAs Get The Upper Hand On E&O Coverage

RIA GROWING PAINS

To become an RIA you need many things, not the least of which are determination, patience, and a high pain threshold. Very few RIAs get off the ground seamlessly. In fact, most have to endure some fairly intense growing pains on their way to success. And if you’re familiar with RIAs or even are one yourself, you know the trajectory of growth is seldom in a straight, increasing line. More often than not your business future dances all over the place like the needle on a seismic meter, causing worry and fear and more than a few sleepless nights.

This all assumes that your business succeeds, of course.

We know all these things because not only do we help RIAs every day…we also have one. We’ve built it, nurtured it, watched it stand on shaky legs, and tried valiantly to keep it moving and growing and doing what it was always meant to do…help people. That’s why we got into this business and we know that’s why you got into it too.

So what happens when the ones who started a business to help others, suddenly need help themselves? Simple. They turn to someone who has the expertise to help and who understands where they’re coming from. And that’s where McDowell comes in. Especially as it relates to something like coverage.

HELPING RIAs GET COVERED

So, you’re building your RIA or you’ve had one for a few years. Congratulations and welcome to the show! One of the things that you will have a continuous need for is Errors and Omissions Coverage (hereafter referred to as E&O, not be confused with the psychedelic rock band ELO, though they’re pretty rad too). E&O of course covers you against things like:

• Client Investment losses
• Negligence
• Breach of fiduciary duty
• Errors and Omissions (of course)
• Breaches of advisory agreement
• Failure to supervise brokers
• Many other things

Now, one of the issues we’ve often found with RIAs is just how little time they have. There are dozens of plates spinning all at once and the fledgling or busy RIA seldom has time to be comparison shopping or truly digging into a policy to discover if it’s what they actually need. As a result, most RIAs go online and secure E&O from an online carrier, simply because they need it. Generally, whatever they buy is expensive, and they don’t get the benefit of having something tailored to their business and coverage needs. Moreover, E&O insurance may not be the only kind of coverage an RIA needs. Many times, RIAs will buy too much insurance or not enough simply because they’re not experts in the field, and becoming one isn’t something they have time for.

McDowell is both an insurance broker and an RIA. Which means we have intimate knowledge of both industries. When RIAs come to us, they leave with coverage this is tailored to their needs, and they pay the most competitive price for that coverage. But they also gain one more thing – a relationship with someone who is going to look after them long into the future. And when you’re in the business of looking after others, it can be incredibly comforting to know that someone is doing the same for you, year after year, claim after claim, need after need.

THE PATH TOWARD GROWTH

What we’ve discovered for ourselves, and seen in others, is that when we have the time and energy to apply to our business (or those oh-so-important selfcare rituals) we flourish. But when we’re pressed for time, over extended, and making rapid decisions, we begin to feel overwhelmed and our productivity goes down, while our overall sense of busyness goes way up.

We know that you’re time is in high demand and at a costly premium. At McDowell, we want to see you and your business be the very best they can be. And that’s why we offer the services that we do.

Interested in learning more about how McDowell can help keep you covered? Click the link below to find out.