Simply Business business insurance

Overview

Simply Business is an insurance agency, not an insurance company. It runs an online marketplace where a small business answers a few questions, sees quotes from several insurers and buys one, and its legal footer says so in plain terms: Simply Business, LLC is a licensed insurance producer in all U.S. states and the District of Columbia, "policies are underwritten by third-party insurance providers, and each provider handles claims on its own policies." The insurer on your declarations page is the company that owes you coverage.

It is owned by Travelers, the largest U.S. commercial insurer, which bought the business in 2017. That makes it one of the few online agencies with a carrier parent, and Travelers is on the panel, but the agency quotes competitors alongside it. In October 2026 its insurance providers page listed 18 carriers: American Builders Insurance Company (ABIC), Accredited America, Arch, biBERK, Cerity, Clear Blue Insurance Company and Clear Blue Specialty, CNA, Coterie, EMPLOYERS, Frank Winston Crum Insurance, Harborway, Hiscox, Liberty Mutual, Markel, RLI, SolePro and Travelers, plus the wholesaler USG Insurance Services. Its claims directory adds AXIS, a Preferra risk retention group and an Amazon general liability program written through Accredited.

Simply Business is paid the way agencies are paid. Its "How Simply Business Works" page says it "receives a commission from the insurance carrier when you buy a policy through us." The commission is built into the premium; there is no separate fee disclosed on the site. For how commissions and contingent pay work, see how commercial insurance brokers get paid.

It sells in every state online and by phone from Boston, and since 2025 increasingly through other agents' platforms. Carrier availability, and therefore which quotes you see, varies by state and class.

History

Simply Business started in the United Kingdom in 2005 as an online distributor of small business insurance and, by the time Travelers came calling, was the U.K.'s biggest online business insurance broker. Before the sale it was owned by the private equity firm Aquiline Capital Partners, which bought it in April 2016.

On March 13, 2017, Travelers agreed to buy Simply Business from Aquiline for an enterprise value of about $490 million (roughly £375 million), including repayment of debt. At the time the broker had more than 430,000 microbusiness customers and placed about £93 million (about $113 million) of premium in 2016, up about 17.5% a year over three years, according to Travelers' announcement as reported by Business Insurance and Insurance Business. The deal closed in the third quarter of 2017, and Travelers said the business would keep its own brand and run as a standalone company. Alan Schnitzer tied the purchase to Travelers' effort to "simplify the small commercial insurance transaction."

The U.S. operation launched in 2017 in Boston, where the U.S. office at 53 State Street remains. The group now reports more than 1 million customers worldwide and more than 1,000 employees across Boston, London and Northampton. Recent moves are about distribution and technology:

• October 2025: an AI insurance advisor built on a retrieval-augmented generation model, which Simply Business says lifted purchase rates by 20% among users who engaged with it during the beta.
• October 2025: a partnership with Agentero, a platform for independent agents, to quote and bind Simply Business's panel.
• December 2025: an integration into SIAA's MarketFinder, giving member agencies of the Strategic Insurance Agency Alliance quote-and-bind access to the panel for sole proprietors and micro businesses.
• April 23, 2026: an app inside ChatGPT that gives an indicative price from three inputs (trade, estimated revenue and ZIP code) and sends the buyer to simplybusiness.com to finish.

Simply Business also powers other companies' online quoting. RLI's home-based business insurance, for example, is quoted through a flow its site describes as "powered by Simply Business."

Business insurance products

The U.S. site quotes these lines, each issued by a carrier from the panel:

• General liability, the most common starting point, typically on the ISO CGL form or the carrier's own version (see commercial general liability).
• Professional liability and errors and omissions for consultants, coaches, designers, tech freelancers and similar service businesses.
• Business owner's policy, combining general liability with business property and business income (see What is a business owner's policy (BOP)?).
• Workers' compensation, including a sole proprietor comp product and employers' liability on its own, aimed at one-person contractors whose clients demand a comp certificate.
• Inland marine for tools and equipment in transit or on job sites.
• Business personal property and cyber liability.

The site advertises "from" monthly prices for each line. Treat those as marketing floors: its own footer says prices shown before a bindable quote are estimates and may not be available. Commercial auto, umbrella and surety bonds are not on the U.S. product menu.

Who it insures

The target is the very small business: sole proprietors, LLCs with a handful of people, home-based businesses, freelancers and independent contractors. The site says it covers more than 400 business types and organizes them into building and construction, cleaning and repair, professional services, home and commercial outdoor maintenance, e-commerce and online retail, brick-and-mortar retail, and food and restaurants. Its footer highlights contractors, cleaners, handymen, Landscaping business insurance, lawn care, Photographer and videographer insurance, e-commerce sellers and life coaches.

Accounts with fleets, heavy hazards, large payrolls or a need for bonding are outside the model. So are most risks that need a tailored surplus lines placement, although a few panel members (Clear Blue Specialty, USG) write non-admitted business. If your class does not fit a panel carrier's appetite, the online quote simply will not return a price.

How to buy

You can buy entirely online. Answer three opening questions, compare quotes, pay and, for many policies, download a certificate of insurance within minutes. Licensed agents take calls at 855-869-5183, sales from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET and service from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET, Monday to Friday.

The online account lets you download certificates (or add them to an Apple or Google wallet), add an additional insured, buy additional policies and update your details. Adding coverage to an existing policy and cancelling both require a phone call. Policies auto-renew, so keep the card on file current; the site warns that letting a policy lapse for non-payment can make coverage harder to buy later.

Independent agents can now place business through Simply Business via SIAA MarketFinder or Agentero. If you buy that way, your agent, not Simply Business, may be your point of contact.

Claims

Simply Business does not handle claims. Its claims page sends you to the issuing insurer and lists each carrier's reporting line and portal, for example biBERK, Hiscox, Markel, Travelers general liability and Travelers professional liability, each with its own number. Have your policy number, the date, time and place of the incident, the people involved and any photos, receipts and police reports ready. Simply Business's agents will help you find the right claim contact, but the adjuster, the coverage decision and the payment all come from the carrier.

Financial strength and ratings

As an agency, Simply Business has no AM Best, S&P, Moody's or Fitch financial strength rating. The rating that matters is the issuing insurer's, and the panel ranges widely, from A++ (Superior) rated companies such as Travelers' main subsidiaries (affirmed by AM Best in August 2025) and Berkshire Hathaway's biBERK paper to smaller and newer carriers and a risk retention group. Look up the specific company on your quote before you buy; AM Best ratings explained for business buyers explains the scale. J.D. Power's small commercial study ranks insurers, not agencies, and Simply Business is not in it.

The agency's own backing is strong: it is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Travelers Companies, Inc. Travelers does not report Simply Business's revenue or premium separately. In March 2026 the company won a "SMB Insurtech Solution of the Year" award from FinTech Breakthrough, an industry awards program.

Strengths and weaknesses

Simply Business is one of the broadest online panels for micro businesses, and Travelers ownership gives it staying power that venture-funded agencies lack. The limits are those of any online agency: narrow menu, light advice, and coverage quality that depends on which carrier you pick.

• Strengths: Owned by Travelers since 2017; about 18 carriers on the panel, including Travelers, Hiscox, biBERK, Markel, CNA and Liberty Mutual; licensed in all 50 states and D.C.; online purchase with instant certificates and self-service additional insureds; sole proprietor workers' comp for contractors who need a comp certificate.
• Weaknesses: An agency, so ratings, forms and claims handling vary by carrier on the same site; no commercial auto, umbrella or bonds; coverage changes and cancellations require a phone call, and service hours stop at 6 p.m. ET on weekdays; advertised "from" prices are estimates, not offers.

How to contact Simply Business