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David McFarland is the Founder and CEO of Coterie, a US-based insurtech focused on making risk transfer efficient for the small commercial P&C insurance space. Coterie currently works with a variety of small business tools including accounting, payment processing, lending, and payroll companies, as well as agent and broker channels. David shares about his nontraditional route into the insurance industry and why small businesses should have at least a business owner’s policy.

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Episode Summary

My journey into the world of insurance is not a typical one. When I went to college my major initially was history and as part of the requirements, I took a math class that sparked my interest. It was ironic because up to that point I had never liked math. So I looked for the fastest way to complete my degree which led me to pursue the actuarial track. I found I enjoyed the classes and how to solve problems using data. After graduating I worked in a handful of insurance jobs and fell in love with the industry.

We started Coterie Insurance to bring speed, simplicity, and service to the commercial insurance space. No matter the size of your business insurance can be complicated but that is especially true for small businesses. At the same time insurance is critical to businesses to ensure they survive whatever catastrophe might hit them. We focus on leveraging data to help small businesses and agents secure insurance policies in minutes, not weeks. While you can buy insurance through our website we find most small businesses like to work with a local agent or partner.

When you are considering any type of insurance it is best to talk with someone knowledgeable because there is a lot of options available. Our research shows 30-40% of small businesses don’t carry any insurance which creates a lot of risk for the business owner. Insurance can cover the assets of your business and provide liability coverage if someone tries to sue you. A simple business owner's policy is the foundation to helping protect you and your business should these types of issues come up.  

Let’s set aside business insurance for a minute to think about personal insurance. If you didn’t carry auto insurance you would want to have say $100,000 in the bank just encase you hit someone. The beauty of insurance is you can trade that $100,000 in the bank for an insurance policy that only costs you $100 a month. This means instead of the $100,000 sitting in the bank you can now use it to pay for your kid's college or start a new business. The same benefit is derived when you have business insurance, you don’t have to have $500,000 sitting in the bank encase someone slips and falls on your property. Instead, you can invest that money in your business and generate a better return on the capital than a savings account.

Resources Shared

• Coterie Insurance
• Thryv
  

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