What Should an Insurance Agency Ask Before Hiring an MSP?

Short answer: Insurance agencies should ask at least five critical questions before hiring a managed IT provider: response time guarantees, cybersecurity protections, insurance industry experience, pricing transparency, and compliance support. For agencies in Plano and North Texas with 25–100 employees, choosing the right MSP can significantly impact uptime, security, and regulatory compliance.

1. What Are Your Guaranteed Response Times?

Insurance agencies depend on constant system availability. Ask potential IT providers about their service level agreements (SLAs).

• Critical issue response time
• Average resolution time
• After-hours support availability

Many agencies expect 15–60 minute response times for urgent issues.

2. Do You Support Insurance-Specific Platforms?

Your MSP should understand the tools insurance agencies rely on daily, including:

• Agency Management Systems (AMS)
• Carrier portals
• CRM platforms
• Microsoft 365 integrations

Industry familiarity can significantly reduce troubleshooting time.

3. What Cybersecurity Protections Are Included?

Ask which security tools are included in the service plan:

• Multi-factor authentication
• Endpoint detection and response
• Email phishing protection
• Security monitoring

Cybersecurity is now one of the most important factors for maintaining cyber insurance coverage.

4. How Do You Support Cyber Insurance Compliance?

Insurance agencies increasingly rely on IT providers to help complete cyber-insurance renewal questionnaires and maintain required security standards.

5. What Is the Monthly Cost Per User?

Managed IT services typically cost $85–$150 per user per month, depending on security controls, response times, and support coverage.

Real-World Example

A Plano insurance agency evaluated three IT providers and ultimately selected one that offered documented SLAs, cybersecurity protections, and experience supporting insurance platforms. Within six months, IT-related downtime dropped by more than 50%.

Serving insurance agencies in Plano, Allen, Garland, and Rockwall, TX.