The last week of a placement is the one where errors are most expensive. The proposal says one retention, the bind request says another; a subjectivity in the quote never made it into the client’s summary; the client’s “go ahead” is an e-mail nobody filed. Each is an E&O claim waiting to happen.
InsightPlacement closes a placement in three recorded steps: the proposal is finalised from the selected quotes, the client’s sign-off is recorded on the decision record, and the bind order is generated from the selection and checked against it — in the demo, as a dry run. This post follows that sequence on illustrative placements.
| Actors | Account executive (client sign-off), placement broker (bind order), practice leader if a control refers or blocks |
|---|---|
| Trigger | Every line has a selected quote |
| Agents involved | Proposal writer, supervisor agent, placement compliance agent |
| Decisions | Finalise the proposal; record the client's sign-off; order binding |
| Outcome | A signed, versioned proposal and a bind order that matches it line by line |
| What is measured | Bind orders with a mismatch (should be zero), days from proposal to sign-off, placements bound before inception |
The proposal
The proposal writer builds the client proposal from the selection and the comparison: a summary, the recommended program line by line against the expiring (carrier, rating, limit, retention, premium including fees), each line’s detail, the subjectivities to clear before binding, a surplus lines notice where it applies, and an authorisation-to-bind block. When the model is off, the summary is written by the engines and says so; when it is on, the model may write the summary but it is checked against the facts.
A proposal’s states
Only a final proposal can be signed off. Recording the sign-off creates a decision on the placement’s record — subject client sign-off, verdict proceed — signed by the person who recorded it, with who on the client’s side accepted and any note. The proposal’s authorisation block then shows “Accepted by … on …”.
The bind order, checked against the quotes
The supervisor agent prepares Order binding on N lines — a dry run only when every line has a selected quote and no placement control blocks. The bind order is generated from the selected quotes, then checked field by field — market, limit, retention, premium, exclusions, enhancements — with the platform’s binder check. In the demo nothing is sent to a carrier; the order is recorded as a dry run and the markets are marked bound.
Step by step
“Finalize proposal version 1: $650.88K for 3 lines” — every figure the selection’s.
The proposal becomes final; the HTML is re-rendered as final and is what the client receives.
Who accepted, when, and a note. Signed on the decision record.
A selected carrier below A- or a surplus line short of declinations blocks; an unappointed carrier refers to compliance.
Only now: “Order binding on 3 lines — a dry run”.
The order is generated and checked against the selected quotes line by line; mismatches would be listed.
The placement shows as bound on Renewals with expiring and bound premium — one illustrative manufacturer renewed at $628K against $614K, +2.4%.
What the agents prepared, and what each rests on
| Agent | What it prepared | What it cites | Who decides |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proposal writer | Finalise the client proposal | The selected quotes and the comparison | Placement broker |
| Supervisor | Order binding (a dry run) | Every line selected; no control blocking; the client’s sign-off | Placement broker |
| Compliance | Diligent effort and security floor confirmed before the order | Declinations; ratings | Compliance |
Edge cases
| What happens | What InsightPlacement does |
|---|---|
| A line without a selected quote | The bind order refuses: “Select a quote for … before ordering binding”. |
| Sign-off on a draft proposal | Refused: only a final proposal can be signed off. |
| The selection changes after sign-off | A new proposal version is needed; the signed one stays as signed. |
| A control blocks | No bind order is prepared until it clears. |
The decision record at bind
| Section | Hit | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Person | Proposal version 1 finalised | proceed |
| Client | Client sign-off recorded, with the signer and a note | pass |
| Control | No placement control blocks | pass |
| Person | Bind order (dry run), checked against the selected quotes | proceed |
For the account team
The client’s yes is on the record, not in your sent folder, and the bind order is built from the quote, not retyped.
For broker IT
The bind order uses the broker platform’s binder check (insight_broker.check), the same one the sibling products use.
For practice leaders
Proposal, sign-off and bind order form one chain of evidence per placement — the shortest path through an E&O review.
Questions we get asked
Does the bind order go to the carrier?
Not in the demo: it is a recorded dry run. In production the order would go through the broker’s configured channel after a person accepts it.
Who can record a client’s sign-off?
Someone on the account team; the record keeps both who recorded it and who signed on the client’s side.
