Glossary
Carrier appointment
A carrier appointment is the formal authorization for an agency or producer to sell a carrier's products and bind its policies. It is a contract: the carrier files the appointment with the state, sets commission terms, and usually expects production in return. No appointment, no direct access to that market.
Direct appointments and the other doors
A direct appointment requires the carrier to approve the agency, and carriers typically want evidence the relationship will produce: a growing book, acceptable loss ratios, the right geography and lines. Newer or smaller agencies usually cannot clear that bar alone, so they get market access through an aggregator, cluster, or network that holds the appointment, or they place business through MGAs and wholesalers where no retail appointment is needed.
Appointments come with strings
An appointment is not a trophy, it is a quota. Carrier agreements commonly carry production expectations and loss ratio thresholds, and an appointment that does not produce can be terminated. Termination is disruptive: the agency has to remarket or roll the affected book before renewals start lapsing.
This is why agencies track production by carrier. Spreading business too thin across many appointments can put every one of them at risk, while concentrating volume builds standing with the carriers that matter.
Common questions
How do new agencies get carrier appointments?
Most start through an aggregator, cluster, or agency network that already holds appointments, or they write through MGAs and wholesalers. Direct appointments come later, once the book supports them.
Can a carrier terminate an appointment?
Yes, subject to the agency agreement and state notice rules. Low production or poor loss ratios are the usual triggers, and termination forces the agency to find new homes for the affected accounts.
Part of the Relay insurance operations glossary. Updated 2026-07-11. See how we source content.
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