The firm’s managing director Danny Cooper said: ”Earlier this year the Chartered Insurance Institute launched an initiative to improve professional standards, but based on our own evidence, this seems to be taking a while to get going.

"We sampled 150 random documents issued by insurers and supposedly checked by brokers and this year just over a third contained errors, compared to 37 per cent last year. We don't think we're being picked on, so extrapolate our small sample to get an idea of the size of the potential problem".

The second part of the survey considers the overall efficiency of brokers and insurers. Mr Cooper continued: "This is getting worse. We basically looked at how many phone calls, emails and letters were reminders or ‘chase ups’ and this was 51 per cent compared to 48 per cent last year. For a service industry we're not really very good are we?"

On behalf of their stable of clients The Insurance Manager deals nationally with about 15 brokers and 30 insurers to provide a somewhat unique assessment of the market.

Mr Cooper concluded: ”We're not naming and shaming at this stage, but worryingly it’s the bigger firms that present the most problems. My professional concern is for the disasters yet to materialise, but closer to home consider what a more professional industry would do to my overheads let alone the stress levels of my staff.”    

You can visit The Insurance Manager at www.theinsurancemanager.co.uk.