The firms a new agency needs before its first bind.
Cuttleflow supplies the systems. An agency also needs a licence, capacity, a broker to place the binder, wordings, a claims arrangement, survey evidence and an accountant. The independent firms listed below work with underwriting agencies and have agreed to hear from agencies starting or growing on Cuttleflow. More firms will be added as listings are confirmed.
You engage each firm directly, on its own terms. Cuttleflow does not charge or receive a fee for any introduction.
- 01Licensing & compliance — your own AFSL or an authorised-representative appointment, and the compliance framework a capacity provider will review.
- 02Capacity — insurers, Lloyd’s managing agents and underwriting hosts that back new agencies.
- 03Capacity broking — a broker to take your business plan to market and negotiate the binder.
- 04Wordings & legal — law firms that review and endorse policy wordings, including the open Commons library.
- 05Claims — third-party claims management where claims authority is not retained by the insurer.
- 06Risk surveys — property risk surveys and valuations that support pricing and acceptance.
- 07Accounting & audit — trust accounting, AFSL financial requirements and the annual audit.
- 08Technology — software vendors whose systems connect to Cuttleflow.
Licensing & compliance
Before a capacity provider will consider a binder, the agency needs its own Australian financial services licence or an authorised-representative appointment, and a compliance framework that will stand up to a coverholder audit.
Helps Australian underwriting agencies build compliance arrangements that work in practice: AFS licensing, risk and compliance frameworks, delegated authority, training, compliance reviews and AI governance, for agencies preparing to launch, expanding authority or strengthening day-to-day controls.
One of Australia’s most experienced insurance-focused transactional and regulatory teams, providing end-to-end advice on all corporate, commercial and regulatory aspects of insurance business: regulatory change projects, corporate transactions, structuring solutions (including reinsurance arrangements), licensing, compliance, due diligence, regulatory approvals, and the legal and regulatory issues involved in establishing, operating and evolving insurance businesses.
t: +61 3 9291 2286 · m: 0414 235 038
matt.ellis@sparke.com.au
Legal, regulatory and compliance advice, intermediary agreements and wording reviews. Mark Radford is recognised in The Best Lawyers in Australia (2014–2026) for Insurance Law and Regulatory Practice, and in Chambers Asia Pacific (2025 and 2026). Radford Lawyers is the winner of Financial Services & Regulatory Law Firm of the Year in Australia, 2027 Corporate INTL Global Awards.
Capacity
Insurers, Lloyd’s managing agents and underwriting hosts that will look at a new agency at formation. For what a capacity provider will ask and what the platform can show them, see Capacity.
We are inviting insurers and Lloyd’s managing agents to state indicative appetite for new agencies on Cuttleflow templates. Indicative capacity statements will be listed here with each provider’s written consent.
Capacity broking
A placing broker takes the agency’s business plan to market, finds a provider whose appetite fits and negotiates the binder terms. Cuttleflow does not place capacity.
Reinsurance and capacity broker with a dedicated MGA Solutions practice in Asia Pacific, able to help an underwriter with a business plan find capacity for a new agency.
m: +61 431 478 245
russell_hails@gallagherre.com
Wordings & legal
An agency writing on an open Commons wording still engages its own lawyers to review it against its appetite and capacity terms and to act on claims. Six independent insurance law firms that know the Commons library are listed, with contacts, on the Commons panel.
Atmos, Kennedys, Lander & Rogers, Moray & Agnew, Sparke Helmore and Wotton Kearney.
DWF Law Australia is a leading insurance practice advising insurers, underwriting agencies, corporates and brokers across the full insurance lifecycle. We provide commercially focused legal advice on policy wordings, coverage, claims, recoveries, and risk management. Our lawyers have deep expertise across casualty, professional indemnity, financial lines, property, construction and specialty insurance classes, helping clients navigate complex claims, manage risk and resolve disputes efficiently and effectively. As part of DWF’s global legal services platform, we combine deep Australian market knowledge with international reach, giving clients access to specialist insurance expertise across key markets worldwide.
Claims
Where the binder gives the agency claims authority, or the insurer requires an independent handler, a third-party claims administrator or loss adjuster manages claims within the delegated limits. First notification of loss is taken on the platform; the handler works the claim.
DWF Claims Management (Australia) Pty Ltd provides specialist outsourced claims management services to insurers, underwriting agencies and Corporates across the Australian insurance market. Our experienced claims professionals deliver end-to-end claims management solutions, delivering best-practice claims outcomes, controlling costs and enhancing customer experience. We understand the operational and regulatory demands facing insurers and underwriting agencies and work as an extension of our clients’ businesses to provide scalable, responsive claims solutions. Our claims management is supported by a best-in-class claims management system Propel which features unparalleled client access to claim files, embedded reports and live dashboards. As part of DWF’s global insurance platform, we combine local expertise with access to international capability and insights.
We are speaking with third-party claims administrators and loss adjusters that handle delegated claims for specialist agencies. Firms will be listed here as each listing is confirmed.
Risk surveys
Property and industrial special risks agencies need survey evidence to price, accept and re-rate risks, and capacity providers will ask how survey requirements are set and followed up.
NSRA delivers independent risk survey reports, replacement cost assessments and thermographic surveys, giving insurers and underwriting agencies the field-verified evidence to price, place and re-rate risk with confidence. National coverage, engineer-led since 2002.
p: 1300 880 422 · m: 0416 429 616
leon.midas@nsra.com.au
Accounting & audit
An agency holding premium needs an insurance broking or trust account, has to meet the financial requirements of its licence and will need an annual audit. An accountant who knows underwriting agencies saves a great deal of time in the first year.
We are speaking with accounting firms that act for underwriting agencies and AFS licensees. Firms will be listed here as each listing is confirmed.
Technology
Systems that connect to Cuttleflow: claims platforms, data and analytics, payments, document and broker tools. Cuttleflow runs the underwriting, policy and bordereau record; these vendors cover what sits either side of it.
We are speaking with software vendors whose systems work alongside Cuttleflow. Vendors will be listed here as each integration and listing is confirmed.
Contact a firm directly
Every listing carries a named person. You do not need to go through Cuttleflow.
Or ask us to introduce you
Tell us the class, territory and stage you are at, and we will introduce you to the firms that fit.
You choose and engage
Each firm acts only for the clients that engage it, on its own terms and at its own rates.
Meet the partners in one room.
We plan to hold small breakfast and lunch sessions for underwriters thinking about starting an agency, with licensing, capacity, broking, legal and claims partners in the room. If you would like an invitation, tell us which class you write.
Partners are independent firms that work with underwriting agencies and are willing to take enquiries from agencies on Cuttleflow. We list a small number of firms in each category, with a named contact, and review listings each year. To be considered, write to us with a logo, a capability statement of about 100 words and the contact you would like enquiries to go to.
m: +61 402 476 189
max@cuttleflow.com
Listing is not endorsement. Partners are independent of Cuttleflow and of each other. A listing does not mean that Cuttleflow recommends a firm, that a firm endorses Cuttleflow or any product configured on it, or that any capacity has been offered or agreed. Each firm acts only for the clients that engage it. Cuttleflow does not receive or pay any fee, commission or other benefit for a listing or an introduction. Cuttleflow Systems is a software company; it does not underwrite, hold risk, provide or place capacity, act as a broker or hold an Australian financial services licence.