Berkley Risk Administrators Insurance Company Review

Pros, cons, and what you need to know
Ann Herro, Insurance Expert Written by Ann Herro
Ann Herro, Insurance Expert
Written by Ann Herro

Ann Herro has been writing about insurance and employee benefits for over 15 years. She has covered topics as easy as insuring a car, and as difficult as transparency in healthcare costs.

Updated

Berkley Risk Administrators at a Glance

  • Berkley Risk Administrators provides at-risk and alternative risk insurance program management services for a broad range of groups and individuals including public entity pools, professional associations, captives, and self-insured clients
  • Workers’ compensation carrier specializing in healthcare, senior living, manufacturers, childcare centers, and social services
  • As a third party administrator (TPA), Berkley Risk manages workers’ compensation, liability, and property claims nationwide
  • A member company of W.R. Berkley Corporation, a Fortune 500 holding company that is rated A+ by A M Best
  • Works with independent insurance agents

Berkley Risk pros: The parent company of Berkley Risk is a Fortune 500 company that is rated A+ by AM Best. Works with independent insurance agents. 24/7 online filing of workers’ compensation losses.

Berkley Risk cons: Berkley Risk does not make available a lot of information online for prospective workers’ compensation customers. Negative customer reviews may dilute the company’s promise of a customer-first experience and exceptional service.

What Type of Insurance Does Berkley Risk Offer?

Berkley Risk offers workers’ compensation insurance and self-insured programs for various businesses and risk pools.

Workers’ compensation insurance

  • $50k minimum premium
  • Specializes in healthcare, senior living, manufacturers, child care centers, and social services

Self-insured programs

  • Provides a broad level of service for many different types of self-insured programs including pools, trusts, RRGs, and captives across many different industries
  • Provides insurance company infrastructure and strategic program management for self-insured groups across the country

Workers’ compensation insurance and self-insurance programs are complex. Any business owner looking for this type of program will benefit from the help of an independent insurance agent who can help you through the process of selecting a carrier.

Using our insurance company directory can help you find the best insurance companies that specialize in your specific coverage needs. The company directory can also help you get connected to an agent near you.

What to Know about Berkley Risk

Berkley Risk is a member company of W. R. Berkley Corporation, an A M Best A+ rated Fortune 500 holding company. Berkley Corporation is comprised of individual operating units that serve a defined insurance market segment.

Berkley Risk is focused on providing self-insured entities program administration services and insurance operations. The company can customize both an insurance company option and a purely administrative option for its self-insured customers. The company underwrites, manages claims, provides risk control, places reinsurance, and provides accounting, finance, and billing solutions.

Berkley Risk also specializes in workers’ compensation insurance for healthcare, senior living, manufacturers, childcare centers, and social services.

What Discounts Does Berkley Risk Offer?

Berkley Risk does not publish information about specific discounts or savings opportunities for its customers.

Independent insurance agents are experts and finding discounts and ways to save for their customers.

Berkley Risk Customer Service

Here's what to know about Berkley Risk’s customer service options.

  • Agents, insureds, and self-insured partners have access to their policy and claim information via a secure, on-demand portal
  • Phone, email, and online chat service are also available, but specific hours of service are not published


Hours


Monday-Friday Not specified


Saturday Not specified


Sunday Not specified

Independent insurance agents can provide even more personalized service. If you have questions or concerns about your policy, an independent agent can advocate on your behalf.

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Berkley Risk FAQ

What is Berkley Risk average claims response time frame?

Berkley Risk does not publish an average claims response time. The company does state that it prides itself on superior claims service and results, with its claims team members averaging over 20 years of experience. Claims team members are empowered to resolve issues immediately.

What is Berkley Risk’s customer service availability?

Berkley Risk provides online customer tools including the following.

  • Action Center Portal
  • 24/7 claim reporting
  • Agent/insured access to policy information
  • Access reports, claim notes, loss runs, more
  • On-demand chat functionality

Customers and agents can also call or email the company for information, bill pay, and other service options.

What is Berkley Risk’s claims process?

The following is Berkley Risk’s process for filing a workers’ compensation claim.

  • Using an online link, immediately report the new loss.
  • After submitting the claim, you’ll receive an email confirmation with your claim number and contact information for submitting additional documentation including supervisor reports, wage information, medical reports, and other supporting documentation.
  • Once a new claim is established you can access a variety of claim-related information using the Berkley Risk Digital Assistant, which provides 24/7, on-demand access to the following information.
  • Who is my adjuster? What is their contact information?
  • What is the status of my check?
  • Where do I send documents?
  • What’s my claim number?

Certain state-specific forms and claims kits are also accessible online.

For self-insured property and casualty losses, loss notice forms are available to download on the Berkley Risk website. The forms can be emailed to Berkley Risk to initiate the claim.

Does Berkley Risk create a user-friendly experience for customers?

Berkley Risk prides itself on putting customers first. The company offers a variety of customer service options and convenient online claims filing. Berkley Risk also offers a useful online portal for customers, as well as phone and email service capabilities.

Online reviews are minimal, but may indicate that the company is not living up to its service promises.

Does Berkley Risk have good workers’ compensation insurance?

Berkley Risk does not publicize details about its workers’ compensation programs, and little information is available elsewhere. But workers’ compensation programs vary according to state laws, and as such, Berkley’s programs can be expected to comply with your state’s requirements. The company specializes in workers’ compensation insurance for healthcare, senior living, manufacturers, childcare centers, and social services.

Is Berkley Risk a good insurance company?

Berkley Risk has the backing of a highly rated and financially stable parent company. This alone makes it a worthy consideration for your workers’ compensation or self-insurance needs. While it may not be the ideal workers' comp carrier for every business, if you fit the company’s underwriting profile, it can be considered to be a good insurance company.

Berkley Risk Customer Reviews

Birdeye 
“This company is a prime example of why people are angry at insurance companies! This company has no moral values, except Money First - People Last! I can only hope that each person that is an adjustor for the company becomes injured at work and suffers through the process of trying to get necessary medical treatment. If you are a company and are looking for workers’ compensation insurance please purchase insurance from a different company. I would not even give this company a one star if it was possible.”


Birdeye 
“I bought insurance for my company and this place is horrendous. I paid for the insurance and yet they kept on sending me letters telling me that I did not pay (even though they gladly cashed in my check). This process took months for them to seek that they took my money. When they finally owned up to their mistake they did not even apologize.”


Birdeye 
“This insurance company doesn't care about people who may need medical attention. They only care about how much money they can save. Have been waiting for test that the doctor ordered stat two weeks ago and they still haven't approved them. Stat to Berkley seems to be when they get around to approving it. If your representative goes on vacation when the doctor orders something, that’s too bad, you will wait until that person has returned. A note to employers who are looking for workers’ compensation insurance for their employees: don't get it through Berkley!”


TrustedChoice.com's Final Review

We award Berkley Risk final rating of 2.5 out of 5 stars. To begin with, its parent company has very high ratings from AM Best. AM Best is a credit rating firm that assesses the creditworthiness of and/or reports on over 16,000 insurance companies worldwide. The AM Best rating points to the insurance company’s ability to pay claims, debts, and other financial obligations in a timely manner. Customers can expect that Berkley Risk has the necessary cash reserves to pay out claims, an essential factor in evaluating any insurance company before purchasing a policy.

Berkley Risk also promises “customer-first” as a guiding principal, but the company may not be living up to its promises. Many customers report experiencing a company that is more concerned with saving money/making money than with getting injured workers the care they need in a timely manner.

That being said, Berkley Risk offers a lot of customer service options for its customers, the ability to file claims online 24/7, and even an online chat option.  

Berkley Risk appears to work with independent insurance agents, which means that your agent can help you decide if the company is right for you.

You can also use our carrier directory to find the best insurance companies to meet your needs. The directory can help you locate companies that specialize in your specific coverage needs and help you connect to an agent near you.

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https://www.berkleyrisk.com

https://www.bbb.org

https://www.ambest.com

https://www.birdeye.com