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An independent school insurance tender is a structured process for inviting brokers to compete to manage the school's insurance programme and approach insurers on its behalf. Run well, it tests cover and service as well as price, and gives governors a clear record of a reasoned decision.
Part of: Education insurance
In short
An insurance tender appoints a broker to manage an independent school's programme. Start about nine months before renewal, give two to four brokers the same data pack (sums insured, pupil and staff numbers, claims, risk improvements and current wordings) and agree scoring weightings in advance. Allocate insurers so brokers do not block each other. Compare cover, especially abuse, property and business interruption terms, not only premium. Record the process for governors, who are trustees making a judgment on advice. Academies should compare commercial terms with the DfE's Risk Protection Arrangement.
An insurance tender is worth running when the programme has not been properly tested in the open market for several years, when the school has changed materially, or when the current broker is not delivering. Typical triggers are a new building or campus, a merger with another school, a growth or fall in boarding numbers, a large or awkward claim, a sharp renewal increase, or a change of bursar who inherits a programme nobody can explain.
Tendering every year is rarely a good idea. A full tender takes several months of the bursar's time, and insurers that value a long relationship with a school may treat frequent changes as a signal about the risk. Many schools run a formal tender every three to five years and ask their broker to test the market selectively in between. The Charity Commission's guidance Charities and insurance (CC49) suggests trustees ask: "Have we shopped around or asked our broker for competitive quotes?" It also says it is usually best to use a broker who understands charities' insurance needs.
A tender appoints a broker, not an insurer. The broker then approaches insurers on the school's behalf. Keep those two decisions separate in your own planning, even if a broker's proposed insurer terms form part of the evaluation.
Start at least nine months before the renewal date. A school renewing on 1 September is effectively working backwards from the summer term governors' meeting, because very little gets approved in August.
| Months before renewal | Stage | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | Scope and governance | Finance or risk committee agrees objectives, budget for the process and who decides |
| 8 | Data pack | Bursary assembles sums insured, pupil and staff numbers, claims and risk information |
| 7 | Invitation | Two to four brokers receive the invitation, data pack and evaluation criteria |
| 6 | Clarifications and presentations | Brokers ask questions, visit the site and present their approach |
| 5 | Broker appointment | Committee scores responses and appoints; letter of appointment issued |
| 4 to 2 | Market approach | Appointed broker presents the risk to insurers; surveys and insurer meetings |
| 2 to 1 | Terms and recommendation | Broker reports terms, cover differences and a recommendation |
| 1 | Approval and binding | Governors approve; cover is bound before renewal and documents follow |
Some schools combine the broker appointment and the market approach by asking each broker for indicative insurer terms. That can work, but it creates the market allocation problem described below.
The quality of the data pack decides the quality of the responses. Under section 3 of the Insurance Act 2015 the school must make a fair presentation of the risk to insurers before cover is placed, so the same information protects the school's position on a future claim. A good pack usually includes:
The independent school insurance renewal checklist sets out the same headings in more detail, and what underwriters ask independent schools explains why each matters.
Invite enough brokers to create real competition but few enough that each response gets proper attention; two to four is common. Look for demonstrable education experience, the team who would actually handle the account, how claims are supported, and how the broker is paid. CC49 notes that a broker must, on request, disclose the commission it receives in connection with a policy, and broker remuneration is a fair question in any tender.
Insurers will commonly work with only one broker on a given risk at a time. If several brokers approach the same insurers, the first to present may effectively block the others. Either ask each broker to name the insurers it would approach and allocate them, or appoint the broker on the strength of its approach and let it run the whole market afterwards. The comparison of a specialist broker and a large insurer route may help frame the shortlist.
Premium matters, but two programmes at a similar price can respond very differently to the same loss. Score cover and service explicitly, with weightings agreed before responses arrive.
| Criterion | What to compare |
|---|---|
| Abuse and safeguarding | Whether included, occurrence or claims made basis, limit, aggregate, excess and conditions |
| Property | Reinstatement basis, day one uplift, listed building terms, excesses and any average condition |
| Business interruption | Fee income basis, indemnity period, increased cost of working limit |
| Management liability | Limit, whether shared across D&O, employment practices and crime |
| Conditions | Warranties, security and fire conditions, notification requirements |
| Service and claims | Named team, claims advocacy, risk management support, reporting to governors |
Illustrative example: a school receives two quotes within a few per cent of each other. One includes abuse cover on an occurrence basis with defence costs outside the limit; the other writes abuse on a claims made basis with a recent retroactive date. On paper the second is slightly cheaper. In practice it could leave historic allegations uninsured. The cost factors for independent school insurance explain why premiums move.
Governors are trustees, and CC49 describes any decision to buy insurance as a matter of judgment. Where trustees have acted reasonably and taken advice where appropriate, uninsured consequences generally fall on the charity rather than on them personally. Record the process: the objectives, the brokers invited, the scoring, the recommendation and the reasons for the decision. Many schools give the finance committee delegated authority so that a late quote does not depend on a full board meeting in August. The governors' management liability guide covers governors' own exposure.
Academies have a different starting point. The DfE describes its Risk Protection Arrangement as "an alternative to commercial insurance for the education sector", and the academy membership year runs from 1 September to 31 August. An academy trust tendering commercial insurance should compare like for like with the RPA, including what sits outside it. See RPA versus commercial insurance.
Before you start, agree who owns the process, set the evaluation weightings, and check the education insurance guide for the covers a school programme normally includes. A wider insurance programme review can sit alongside a tender. Apex arranges insurance for independent schools; a broker reads every enquiry.
There is no fixed rule. Many schools run a formal broker tender every three to five years, with selective market testing in between, and tender sooner after a material change such as a merger, new buildings or a difficult renewal. Tendering every year usually costs more time than it saves and can unsettle insurers that value continuity.
Allow around nine months from scoping to binding. Appointing the broker typically takes three to four months, and the broker then needs time to present the risk, arrange surveys and negotiate terms before governors approve. A 1 September renewal usually means approval at the summer term meeting.
You can, but insurers commonly deal with only one broker on a risk at a time. If you want indicative terms, allocate named insurers to each broker. Otherwise appoint the broker on its approach, experience and service, and let it run the whole market.
Academies can join the DfE's Risk Protection Arrangement, which the DfE describes as an alternative to commercial insurance. A trust that prefers commercial cover should compare the two like for like, including risks the RPA does not cover, and follow its own procurement and governance requirements.
Send us your current schedules or renewal pack and we will review the whole programme and tell you plainly what to keep and what to change. No fee and no obligation. Or call 0117 325 0027.
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