How the cost of an RWI policy works

Same RWI marketYour counsel’s policy formWholesale pricing

Every RWI placement carries three costs: the policy premium, the insurer’s underwriting fee, and surplus-lines taxes and fees. The policy premium already includes the brokerage commission — 15%–17.5% of premium — which the insurer pays to the broker that places the coverage.

Large retail brokers typically add a separate retail broker fee on top of those three costs. Outside transactional risk it is unusual for an insured to pay both a brokerage commission and a separate fee on one policy.

Choose a deal type, set a coverage limit from $3M to $100M, and select the surplus-lines tax state. Every assumption is editable. Figures are illustrative, not a quote.

The cost of an RWI placement

Policy premium

Paid to the insurer for the coverage itself

Brokerage commission
15%–17.5% — inside the premium

Underwriting fee

The insurer’s diligence work

Surplus-lines taxes & fees

State-mandated, both paths

Separate retail broker fee

Assumed at the greater of 0.75% of the coverage limit and a $75,000 minimum — both editable in the calculator below.

The three costs every placement carries

Typically added by large retail brokers

Why the fee

What are you paying for?

The insurers are the same. The policy form is the one your counsel negotiates. Whoever places it, the broker is paid a commission inside the premium. Scale usually makes a purchase cheaper; here it is the larger broker that adds a second fee.

The things a buyer assumes the fee is paying for are available without it:

A-rated insurers. Coverage placed only with insurers rated at least A- by A.M. Best, on your counsel’s preferred policy form.
Independence from every due diligence workstream. No due diligence report or go-forward insurance program of the broker’s in the claim file, so no conflict of interest arises if a claim is disputed. RWI typically sits excess of the company’s commercial insurance, so a disputed claim often turns first on whether that program, and the diligence behind it, should have responded. Why it matters
Claims weight and market intelligence. Ours come from one of the largest wholesale transactional risk platforms in the U.S., whose dedicated transactional risk team places nothing on your deal but the policy.

What the separate fee adds is a second charge and, where the same firm also holds the diligence and the go-forward program, a potential conflict of interest if a claim is disputed. Certainty of closing comes from the insurer, the policy form, and the diligence record. It does not come from the fee.

Estimate your placement

RWI coverage limit

$25M

Surplus-lines tax state

Surplus-lines taxes and fees modeled at 3.54% of premium for Illinois — premium tax plus any stamping or filing fee and base-rate additions, compiled August 2026 from state statutes, departments of insurance, and surplus-lines stamping offices.

Wholesale Pricing

Brokerage commission: 15% ($64K) to 17.5% ($88K) of the premium
Separate retail insurance broker fee: N/A
Total brokerage compensation: $64K – $88K

Total estimated RWI cost$470K – $580K

Typical retail path

Brokerage commission: 15% ($64K) to 17.5% ($88K) of the premium
Separate retail insurance broker fee: $0 – $0
Total brokerage compensation: $64K – $88K

Total estimated RWI cost$545K – $705K

Review modeling assumptions+

Illustrative only. This is not a quote, offer of insurance, or binding indication. Actual premiums, underwriting fees, surplus-lines taxes and fees, broker compensation, retentions, exclusions, and other policy terms vary by transaction, insurer, jurisdiction, deal facts, and final policy documentation.

Insurer Security Standard

WolfTRI places coverage only with insurers — or, where coverage is underwritten through a managing general agent, the insurers on whose paper it writes — rated at least “A-” (Excellent) by A.M. Best with a FSC VII or greater (or an equivalent S&P/Fitch/Moody’s rating) at the time of placement.

Should we ever recommend a market below this standard, we will notify you in writing and obtain your consent before binding. Ratings are agency opinions, not a guarantee of solvency.