A Broker of Record (BOR) letter is the signed instruction that transfers authority over a client’s insurance policies from one broker to another. The letter needs six things to work: party identities, policy numbers and insurer name, an effective date, an authorisation statement, a termination of the outgoing broker’s authority and a signature from someone authorised to bind the client.
This guide sets out each component, the submission sequence that gets the change recognised without disputes and the mistakes that stall transitions.
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What Is A Broker Of Record Letter?
When a client moves their general insurance portfolio between brokers, the insurer will not simply take a phone call’s word for it. The BOR letter is that formal notice: a written, signed confirmation that the client appoints the incoming broker and ends the outgoing broker’s authority. Insurers require it because commission flows, service responsibilities and legal liability all hinge on who is recorded as broker of record at any moment.
Components To Include
Party And Policy Details
- Client’s legal entity name and address, exactly as it appears on the policies
- Incoming brokerage’s full name, address and adviser details
- Insurer or underwriting agency name so the letter reaches the right department
- Every affected policy number, listed individually rather than described generically
- The effective date when the new broker’s authority begins
Authority Statements
Two statements carry the legal weight. The authorisation clause confirms the new broker may manage the listed policies from the effective date. The termination clause formally ends the previous broker’s authority over them. Where the appointment has a fixed term, state it; most run indefinitely until replaced.
Execution Block
The letter must be signed by a person authorised to act for the client company: name, title, signature and date of signing. An office manager signing without authority is the fastest way to invalidate the whole exercise.
Submission Sequence
- Draft and verify: confirm every policy number against the client’s current schedule before anything is signed.
- Obtain the signed original: get the authorised signatory’s wet or accepted electronic signature per the insurer’s requirements.
- Lodge with the insurer: send through the channel the insurer specifies, keeping proof of delivery.
- Secure written acknowledgment: ask the insurer to confirm receipt and the date they will action the change; follow up if silence passes a few business days.
- Give the outgoing broker professional notice: provide a copy for their records and handle any objection calmly; the client’s signed decision governs.
During the handover window, agree who completes in-flight work such as mid-term adjustments or claims already underway, and record that agreement in writing. Ambiguity here produces the disputes that give BOR letters their bad reputation.
Mistakes That Stall Transitions
The common failure points are predictable: missing policy numbers that force the insurer back to the client, unsigned or unauthorised signatures, vague effective dates that create coverage gaps in servicing, and silence toward the outgoing broker that escalates into a conduct complaint. Each one costs weeks and none survives a careful pre-submission read.
Where Technology Fits
Template-driven document tools keep the component set consistent across every transition, and automated reminders chase insurer acknowledgments so nothing sits unnoticed. Some practices also apply artificial intelligence tooling to review policy schedules during handover, surfacing coverage gaps worth raising with the client early. Treat these as efficiency layers on top of a correct letter, never substitutes for one: no software fixes a missing signature. Practices exploring AI tools for broader workflow gains should still anchor the BOR process on the plain document standards above.
Conclusion
A working BOR letter is short, specific and signed by someone with authority: identities, policy numbers, effective date, authorisation, termination and execution block, lodged through a trackable channel and confirmed in writing. Get those elements right and the transfer completes without drama.
If your practice expects to receive or lose portfolios this year, build the one-page BOR template now against the component list above and have your licensee or compliance adviser check it once. When the first real transition lands, you send a finished letter the same day instead of improvising under pressure.
