Why agents are learning to quote Branch first

Many agents have a default habit: run every new customer through a comparative rater first. Type in all the basics, get back a list of carrier prices ranked lowest to highest, then work the list top to bottom. It’s the path of least resistance, and for a long time that made sense. A rater is built to compare a lot of carriers fast.

But fast to a list and fast to an answer you can use aren’t the same thing. A comparative rater needs a full data set before it can rank anything, and gathering that data set takes time. Quoting directly with Branch starts with just a name and address. For customers who fit Branch’s appetite, that’s enough to get a real, underwritten number back.

That difference adds up for an agency quoting dozens of customers a week. Less time spent on data entry before a price even comes back is time an agent gets to spend on the parts of the job that actually grow the business: the follow-up call, the referral conversation, the next customer in the pipeline.

An agency built on referrals

Juan Mueras knows what that time is worth. He opened Canyon Vista Insurance in Orem, Utah, to be “an agency of the people, for the people.” Canyon Vista serves many multicultural families, and being able to explain coverage to both spouses in the language each is most comfortable with has become one of the agency’s real strengths. “Families would have a good experience with us, and then they would send their friends, relatives, and other family members our way,” he says.

A referral-driven agency stays busy, so Juan has built Canyon Vista to be one of the most efficient in Utah County. “I’m constantly looking for ways to improve. I’m implementing AI, improving our organization and processes, and reinvesting what we’re earning back into the agency so we can continue to grow,” he says.

A price that holds

That efficiency mindset shows up in how Juan quotes. He’s found that a rater’s price doesn’t always hold up once underwriting takes a closer look. “In my experience, prices don’t always come back accurately through comparative raters, so I still prefer to quote directly with the carriers whenever possible,” he says. Part of what makes that direct quote worth the trip: Branch doesn’t charge for MVRs, so “the price I see is more accurate and final, which allows me to be more direct with the customer and provide them with a real price upfront.” Because the driving record comes into the quote at the start, violations show up in the first number he sees.

For an agent running a growing book of business, that’s the real math: less time spent entering data that may not lead anywhere, and less time spent re-quoting a price that didn’t hold. It’s time back, multiplied across every customer who fits the profile.

Knowing who fits

Juan sends the right customers to Branch first. “Clients who own homes are often a natural fit for Branch, especially because of the strong home bundle discount,” he says. Many of his customers are younger couples buying in newer developments, and those homes tend to line up well with Branch’s underwriting guidelines. When a home is older or falls outside those guidelines, he moves on to other markets.

How to quote Branch first

Just start with a name and address. Branch fills in what it can from there, and you review the details before the price comes back. Juan calls Branch’s quoting experience “one of the most user-friendly and informative of all the carrier platforms I work with.”

For customers who look like Canyon Vista’s sweet spot, come to Branch before you open the rater. You’ll often get a workable answer sooner, and you’ll have more of your day left for the work that grows your agency.

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