Guides
Full-stack insurtechs vs MGAs vs digital agencies
How to tell whether an insurtech is a carrier, an MGA or an agency, why it matters for claims, ratings and renewal, and where to check on your policy.
Insurtech brands look alike online, but they are three different kinds of business. A full-stack insurtech is itself a licensed insurance company that bears the risk. A managing general agent (MGA) underwrites and administers policies using an insurer's paper and authority. A digital agency or broker sells policies that other insurers issue. The difference decides who pays your claim, whose financial strength matters, and what happens if the company changes course.
The three models
| Full-stack carrier | MGA (or program administrator) | Digital agency or broker | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who bears the risk | The company's own insurer, often with reinsurance | An unaffiliated insurer, or the MGA's carrier affiliate | Unaffiliated insurers |
| Who underwrites | The company | The MGA, within authority granted by the insurer | The insurer |
| Who sets the price | The company, within its rate filings | The MGA, within the insurer's filings or on surplus lines forms | The insurer |
| Who is paid | Premium less claims and expenses | Commission, often with a profit commission tied to results | Commission from the insurer, sometimes fees |
| Claims | The company or a third-party administrator | The insurer, sometimes delegated to the MGA | The insurer |
| Key credentials | Insurer license, AM Best rating, statutory capital | Insurance producer or MGA license, carrier partner's rating | Producer license, carrier partners' ratings |
| Your protection if it fails | guaranty fund if admitted | The paper carrier remains liable | The paper carrier remains liable |
Many companies are hybrids: an agency that sells its own insurer's policies and others', or an MGA with a carrier affiliate for part of its business. Brand-level labels like "insurance company" or "insurtech" do not tell you which.
What each model means for you
Full-stack carriers
The carrier decides coverage and pays claims from its own balance sheet. That makes its financial strength a direct question. Check its rating (see AM Best ratings explained for business buyers) and whether it is an admitted insurer, which affects guaranty fund protection. Full-stack carriers can also change underwriting appetite quickly, since they own the result; a loss-making class can be repriced or exited at renewal. NEXT Insurance presents itself as an agency: its website states that Next Insurance, Inc. and its affiliates is an insurance agency, and that policy obligations are the sole responsibility of the issuing insurance company. NEXT is part of the ERGO Group, a Munich Re company, after ERGO completed its purchase of the remaining shares on July 1, 2025, according to ERGO's announcement.
MGAs and program administrators
An MGA holds delegated authority: it can quote, bind and sometimes handle claims for an insurer within agreed guidelines. Insurtech MGAs use technology and data to underwrite a niche, and use an insurer's balance sheet and reinsurers' capital. See Managing general agents (MGAs): what they are and what they mean for buyers and program business: niche insurance through program administrators. Because the MGA's interests are tied to premium growth, insurers watch loss ratios, and capacity can be withdrawn if results disappoint; the buyer sees a nonrenewal. Cyber specialists Coalition and At-Bay are examples where the policy may come from several insurers. Coalition's licenses page describes Coalition Insurance Solutions as a licensed producer and surplus lines broker acting for unaffiliated insurers, and lists its own admitted carrier, Coalition Insurance Company, alongside carriers such as Lloyd's, so which policy paper you get depends on the product and state. Check the policy itself.
Digital agencies and brokers
These sell policies from insurers that sit behind them. Huckleberry describes itself as an online agency owned by Paychex, quoting several carriers. Vouch's legal page says insurance services are provided by Vouch Specialty Insurance Services, LLC, and describes an in-house brokerage team. Pie Insurance is both: its agency arm, Pie Insurance Services, sells and administers policies, while The Pie Insurance Company underwrites its workers' compensation, and unaffiliated insurers write other lines such as commercial auto and general liability, according to Pie's legal page. Embroker and Thimble also sell online; read each company's own disclosure page for its structure. How these firms are paid is in how commercial insurance brokers get paid.
How to find out who you are dealing with
- Read the declarations page. The insurer named there is the risk-bearer. The brand on the app is not.
- Find the legal or licenses page on the company website. Insurers are usually listed with NAIC numbers. Look for statements such as "policy obligations are the sole responsibility of the issuing insurance company."
- Check the insurer's rating and licensing. Look up the issuer's financial strength rating and its state license status with your state insurance department.
- Check if the policy is admitted or surplus lines. A surplus lines policy usually shows a notice, and a state guaranty fund generally does not cover non-admitted insurers. See excess and surplus lines.
- Ask who handles claims. Some insurtechs have in-house claims teams; others outsource to third-party administrators.
- Find out what service you get. A true agency can shop another market for you at renewal. An MGA can only offer its program's insurers.
What happens when the model changes
Insurtech models change. Companies have pivoted from agency to carrier, sold themselves to larger groups, narrowed to a single class, or lost reinsurance and capacity. The insurtech funding: who is raising and why guide covers why. For a policyholder:
- A carrier is acquired. The policy stays in force; see when your insurer is sold or merges: what happens to your policy.
- An MGA loses its paper carrier. Policies in force remain with the insurer, but renewals may not be offered. Plan for the possibility of remarketing 60 to 90 days before expiration.
- An agency closes. The policy stays with the insurer, but you need a new servicing agent. Keep a copy of the policy, endorsements and payment history.
Hypothetical example
Say a landscaper buys general liability and workers' compensation through a slick app. The app shows one brand. The declarations show general liability from an unaffiliated surplus lines insurer and workers' compensation from the company's carrier affiliate. A claim on the GL policy goes to the surplus lines insurer's claims team, and a comp claim goes to the affiliate. If the landscaper knows this, it knows where to send notices, whom to call when a certificate needs updating, and which insurer's financial strength matters for each line.
Key takeaways
- An insurtech can be a carrier, an MGA, an agency, or a mix; the declarations page names the actual insurer.
- Carriers bear the risk and need strong ratings; MGAs and agencies depend on the insurers behind them.
- NEXT, Coalition, Pie, Huckleberry and Vouch are structured differently; each company's legal page explains how.
- Admitted versus surplus lines status affects guaranty fund protection.
- Keep copies of your policy and an independent broker relationship in case a company changes model or leaves a market.