Safebuilt Insurance Services has been a recognizable name in niche contractor insurance, especially in general liability and hard-to-place construction risk. Over 20 years, the business built specialized programs and a digital quoting platform and gained partnerships with rated carriers to serve contractors, retailers, and other commercial clientele. This article explains what Safebuilt Insurance Services offers, how its technology and partnerships set it apart, and what brokers and insureds should know today.
Quick Snapshot: What Safebuilt Insurance Services Was
Safebuilt Insurance Services (often shortened to SIS or SIS Insure) began as a program administrator focused on construction and contractor markets. The firm built programmatic solutions: contractors’ general liability programs, commercial auto, builders’ risk and inland marine, licensing and performance bonds, excess liability, and workers’ compensation, specialized for construction and trades. SIS emphasized online quoting and policy management to expedite placement for brokers and insureds.
Origin, Headquarters, and Corporate Status
Founded in the mid-2000s and headquartered in Carlsbad, California, Safebuilt Insurance Services established itself as a licensed program manager across many states. Public filings and business directories record its Carlsbad address and leadership tied to the company’s specialty holdings.
As the market changed, it shifted from serving large contractors to providing artisan and remodeler programs.
Core Products and Who They Served
Safebuilt Insurance Services focused on providing insurance for the construction business ecosystem and its different segments. These included:
- Contractors’ General Liability (GL) – tailored programs for trade contractors, artisans, and remodeling businesses.
- Commercial Auto – policies for contractors and their vehicles or fleets.
- Builders Risk & Inland Marine: Covers construction projects and construction tools and equipment.
- Bonds & Licensing Solutions – offered performance and contract bonds and licensing support.
- Excess Liability and Workers’ Compensation – included in comprehensive package solutions.
Since Sis created their program products instead of solely functioning as a retail carrier, its risk appetite and underwriting focused primarily on difficult-to-place construction risks. This developed into a highly sought-after construction niche for specialized brokers.
Technological Innovations and Distribution: Quoting Systems and AI Features
The construction and contractor-focused hackathon for brokers set Safebuilt apart, and so did their focus on technology. Their platform permitted brokers to quote and bind numerous contractor risks swiftly. After an acquisition, the focus on technology increased. A parent company invested in AI-powered rating and online policy systems for improved consistency and speed in underwriting and distribution, for brokers with numerous small contractors. Quoting speed and streamlined user interfaces deliver major friction and time reductions for binding.
Partnerships and Carrier Capacity
Instead of being a singular insurer, SIS grew by bundling specialty programs with A-rated carriers to provide capacity. A highlighted example is a partnership announced to broaden access to the AM Best-rated contractor GL program capacity. These strategic carrier partnerships enabled SIS to construct competitive-rated construction business solutions.
These partnerships matter due to the necessity of blending the underwriting authority, distribution reach, and carrier appetite to provide dependable coverage.
Acquisition and Rebrand — What Changed
In 2019, Integrated Specialty Coverages (ISC) purchased Safebuilt Insurance Services – a program administrator and managing general agent focused on technology. After completing the acquisition , ISC started to assimilate SIS’s functionalities into its comprehensive product and technology offerings. In early 2023, ISC officially rebranded SIS as ISC. SIS brokers encountering legacy documents with the SIS name should be made aware that a significant number of functions have relocated to ISC.
Why the Rebrand Matters to Brokers and Insureds
Operational rebranding bears little effect on everyday activities. Here’s the significance of this one:
- Unified technology interface: Brokers will have an integrated online submission, automated quoting, and binding workflow across ISC’s (previously SIS) programs. Brokers no longer have to adapt to multiple systems.
- Retention of carrier capacity: While partnerships with carriers do not immediately change with rebranding, new carrier partnerships due to acquisitions are common. Brokers should verify specific carrier appetite and rating for their accounts.
- Changes in program eligibility and appetite: a firm’s eligibility and rates may change upon being assimilated by a larger MGA. Always verify the most up-to-date checklists and criteria before quotation.
Practical Assistance: Contractor Risk Placements that Were Once Sent to Safebuilt Insurance Services
For brokers and risk managers who are used to doing business with Safebuilt Insurance Services, these tips will help smooth the transition:
- Confirm the program name with the portal, look for ISC or the current trade name when logging in with new business submissions.
- Validate carrier capacity. For every account, validate which carrier is providing the limits and if A-rated capacity is still available.
- Check the updated underwriting guidelines. Rebrands and merges come with new rules; make sure to check minimum premiums, exclusions, and class codes.
- Run through the quoting and onboarding sequence for sample accounts. Porting a book before verifying that quoting, binding, and policy issuance are seamless can come at a cost.
Strengths and limitations — A Balanced View
Strengths
- Specialist focus: A focused construction/contractor specialization ensures that products and underwriting address genuine field exposures.
- Swift completion through PR technologies: For small and medium-sized accounts, turnaround time decreases with online quoting and policy management.
- Expertise in program formation: Form, pricing, and loss control services tailored for specific trades can be created by program administrators for better risk transfer fidelity.
Limitations
- The program marketplace holds a narrower scope than the open market: Overall, the appetite is more limited than the open market; some risks will still require surplus lines.
- During a rebranding or acquisition transition, operational risks and delays (submissions through portals, updating guidelines) can lead to logins. Working with ISC is necessary.
Who Should Consider these Programs?
- Strategic and community-based construction services require specific general liability and builders’ risk policies.
- Insurance brokers need instant quote engines to manage large volumes of micro contractor accounts.
- Insurers and reinsurers seeking program distribution have a dedicated digital channel focused on construction verticals.
Frequently Asked Questions (brief)
Does Safebuilt Insurance Services still operate under that name?
The Safebuilt Insurance Services (SIS) business unit was purchased and branded under Integrated Specialty Coverages (ISC). Legacy references to “Safebuilt Insurance Services” may still be present, but many functions are now integrated under ISC.
What lines did Safebuilt Insurance Services underwrite or manage?
SIS provided contractor general liability, commercial automobile, builders’ risk, inland marine, bonds, excess liability, and workers’ compensation program solutions. These lines of business were provided through specialized carrier partners, or in some cases, in RRG structures.
Where was the company located?
Public records and filings list Carlsbad, California, as the principal address for Safebuilt Insurance Services and related specialty holdings.
Final Takeaways
Safebuilt Insurance Services created a sustainable programmatic insurance niche for contractors, backed by an online quoting system and strategic carrier partnerships. The acquisition and rebrand to Integrated Specialty Coverages marked a broader industry shift — program administrators are consolidating to enhance their technology and distribution capabilities.
For brokers, contractors, and risk managers, the business implications are clear: verify the present program names and check for ISC, confirm the carrier capacity and underwriting appetite for each account, and use the quicker online quoting systems wherever they are suitable and aligned with the risk parameters. If you placed business with SIS in the past, consider the change to be an operational revision, not a discontinuation of an underwriting solution, as a number of the program strengths are still, in essence, incorporated, just under a different corporate name.