Send four things: your policy pages, claims history, payroll by job type, and a description of your work. The full checklist is in the table below. With the whole packet in hand a broker can have quotes back in days instead of weeks, because the insurer has nothing left to ask. Who this is for: a business owner who wants quotes fast, without three rounds of follow up questions.
The short version
- Quotes take as long as the missing document. Send everything at once and they come back in days.
- Your claims history report is the thing most owners do not have on hand. Ask your insurer for it today.
- Payroll by job type and a plain description of your work drive the price more than anything else.
- The broker fills in the application. You supply the facts and sign it.
- Send the contract too. It tells the broker what wording and limits the quote has to include.
What is on the checklist?
Here is the full list. The more you send up front, the fewer questions come back.
| Document | Where to find it | Why the insurer needs it |
|---|---|---|
| Current policy pages (the front pages listing your limits, premium, and dates, called declarations pages) | Your policy packet or your current agent | Shows what you carry now, and what a quote has to beat |
| The full policies, including the extra pages that change them | Same packet, or ask your agent | Shows the wording you already have for your customers, so nothing is lost in the switch |
| Your claims history report, 3 to 5 years, dated in the last 60 to 90 days (insurers call it loss runs) | Request it in writing from each insurer you have had. See how to get a loss run | Every insurer prices on claims history. Without it most will not quote. A new business sends a no claims letter instead |
| Payroll by job type (field workers, office staff, owners, supervisors) | Your payroll service or bookkeeper | Liability and workers comp are priced on payroll, rated by the job category it falls under |
| Revenue by kind of work | Your books or tax return | Some liability policies are priced on sales instead of payroll |
| A short paragraph describing your work (homes versus commercial, new build versus remodel, how much is at height, and your three biggest jobs) | You write it | Decides which insurers want you and which exclusions they attach |
| Subcontractor costs, and whether you collect their certificates | Your books | An uninsured sub's payroll gets added to your policy at that sub's own job category, not at your rate. If you cannot show what the sub paid its people, many states charge a percentage of what you paid the sub instead, which is usually worse |
| Vehicle and driver list (year, make, model, VIN, plus each driver's birth date and license number) | Registrations and your team | Required for any auto quote. Insurers run driving records |
| The contract or bid that started this | Your customer | Sets the limits and extra wording the quote must include |
Claims history is what slows quotes down most, because it can take a few days to two weeks to arrive. Request it the same day you decide to shop. And collect a certificate from every sub, or you will pay for their people at audit.
Do I have to fill out the application myself?
No. The broker fills in the standard application from what you send, then sends it to you to check and sign. Most insurers want the signed application before they release a firm quote, and every one of them requires it before coverage can start.
Read it before you sign. If the payroll, the description of your work, or an answer about past claims is wrong, the quote will be wrong too, and a wrong answer can cause trouble at claim time.
How fast can quotes come back with a complete packet?
Illustrative timelines, assuming everything above arrives together.
| Policy | With a complete packet | With a partial packet |
|---|---|---|
| General liability or workers comp, standard insurer | 2 to 5 business days | 2 to 4 weeks |
| General liability, specialty insurer | 5 to 10 business days | 3 to 6 weeks |
| Commercial auto | 3 to 7 business days | Stalls until the driver list is complete |
| Umbrella | 3 to 10 business days after the policies beneath it are quoted | Cannot start until the others are done |
The right hand column is where most quotes live, and the only difference is the packet. Start 60 to 90 days before renewal. See renewal season prep.
What if I do not have some of these documents?
Say so, and send what you have. A new business has no claims history and no prior premium, and a broker can work with a payroll estimate and a short signed statement from you that nothing has gone wrong so far. If you lost the policy packet, your agent can send a copy in a day or two. See whether you can ask for quotes without committing to buy.
What this looks like in real life
Illustrative example. It is typical of what we see and is not a promise of how any specific situation would be handled.
The setup: A roofing contractor in Florida with eight employees needs a $1,000,000 general liability policy and a $2,000,000 umbrella for a new general contractor, starting in 18 days. He emails a broker one line: "Need a GL quote, we do roofs."
What went wrong: The broker replies with a list of what she needs. He sends his policy pages Thursday, guesses his payroll Friday, and asks his insurer for his claims history the following Monday. It arrives nine days later. The specialty insurers that quote roofers will not look at the file without it.
What it cost: The first quote lands 16 days after his email, with two days to spare, and the umbrella is not quoted in time. He starts the job on a short extension of his old policy at a higher rate, about $900 more than the new quote for that month. Illustrative figures.
The fix: Had the packet in the table gone out on Tuesday, both quotes would have been back in about a week. The delay was nine days waiting on a report he could have requested on day one.
Frequently asked questions
Q: What should I send a broker to get accurate quotes quickly?
Your policy pages and full policies, three to five years of claims history, payroll by job type, revenue by kind of work, a description of your work, sub costs, a driver list, and the contract behind the request.
Q: How do I get my claims history from my insurer?
Ask each insurer you have used in the last five years, in writing, for your claims history report, which they call loss runs. Your current agent can request it for you. Most arrive in a few days to two weeks.
Q: Why does the broker need my payroll broken out by job type?
Because liability and workers comp are priced by the job category your payroll falls under. Field payroll costs far more to insure than office payroll. A single total forces the insurer to assume the worst.
Q: Do I really need to send my current policy if I want to switch?
Yes. It shows the broker the wording and limits you have today, so the new quote does not quietly drop something your customers rely on.
Q: Is it safe to send driver license numbers and dates of birth to a broker?
It is normal and required for any auto quote, since insurers check driving records. Send them through the broker's secure upload rather than plain email if you can.
Q: How far ahead of my renewal should I send the packet?
Sixty to ninety days out. That leaves time for your claims history to arrive, specialty insurers to respond, and your broker to negotiate before your current policy expires.
How Morrow helps
Morrow is a licensed independent commercial insurance brokerage that works with contractors and trades every day. Turning a pile of contractor documents into one complete application that insurers can quote in days is the first thing we do for every new client.
- Free contract review. Send us the contract or bid documents and we mark up the insurance section in plain English, whether or not you buy anything from us.
- Free, instant certificates. Clients issue their own certificates of insurance online in about a minute, any hour, any day, at no charge.
- Markets you cannot reach online. One application, shopped across many insurance companies for general liability, workers comp, auto, umbrella, and pollution coverage.
One more thing. This article is general information and is not legal advice or a statement of coverage. Your contract and your policy wording control in every case. Requirements vary by customer, by state, and by insurance company, so have a licensed advisor review your own contract and your own policy before relying on any of it.
Last updated: Reviewed by the Morrow commercial lines team. Last updated September 2026.