Life cycle risk management: agents and brokers are trying to earn a seat at the financial planning table.

It's a good time for independent insurance agents and brokers to build or strengthen strategic relationships with financial planners and other wealth managers. For while agents and brokers can educate these trusted advisers about identifying and assessing the property and casualty risks that evolve over the course of one's life, they in return will be rewarded with a powerful source of new business in the expanding affluent marketplace.

At a time when their clients are facing an unprecedented array of complex and costly global, technological and litigation risks, financial planners and wealth managers are taking a greater interest in property and casualty risk management. Many planners are evaluating their clients' asset protection by assessing their property and liability insurance coverage.

According to a recent survey of more than 100 financial planners by the Chubb Group of Insurance Cos., 57% of the survey respondents examine their clients' asset protection through their levels of property and casualty insurance. That's a 40% increase over a Chubb survey finding seven years earlier.

Some financial planners help clients ensure the preservation of wealth even before addressing financial needs and investment goals. Although they might ask some of the right questions, they often do not realize the depth of these risks and may fail to uncover the most dangerous perils.

According to Chubb's survey, financial planners also frequently skim over property insurance, focusing the bulk of their insurance evaluation upon life and liability coverages. In addition to glossing over what is commonly a client's most valuable financial asset--a home--planners often confine their insurance evaluations to coverage amounts. The financial strength with which these limits are backed can be tenuous and the coverage features can vary. In addition, some clients face risks from which no umbrella policy can provide protection, such as employment practices and directors and officers liability exposures.

Even if planners evaluate their clients' noninvestment risks effectively, they often refer their clients to local agents of the direct writers, who cannot provide the holistic risk consultations or the specialized product offerings that many affluent customers truly need.

Independent agents and brokers can capitalize on the situation by forming strategic partnerships with financial planners and other wealth managers. A great way to start is to take a page out of a financial planning textbook. Planners are taught to focus on clients' life stages and goals. Just as individuals have distinct financial capabilities and goals at different stages of their lives, so too do they have distinct risks.

Agents can encourage planners to ask questions that will raise red flags to help identify risks and determine their severity. These types of questions can help planners identify often overlooked or underinsured areas of personal risk that change over the course of a lifetime:

* Do you own a condo or co-op apartment? Early in their careers, many young professionals may purchase these apartments. Many of these units are underinsured. Apartment owners often do not realize that their master deed may leave them liable for any damage to the interior portions of their units or building common areas.

* How many homes do you own? As individuals accumulate wealth, they may purchase vacation properties. Many of these homes are located in regions with seasonal exposures. Dry regions can heighten the risk of wildfires; coastal regions can increase exposure to flooding and storm damage; and winter climates can cause pipes to freeze and burst.

* What are your travel habits? Younger people tend to travel less frequently, but may take adventurous vacations such as mountain climbing, which can expose them to medical emergencies. As Americans grow older, they may begin to travel for business as well as vacation. After retirement, Americans often travel much more frequently, visiting more exotic locations, exposing themselves to politically motivated kidnappings, terrorist violence and infectious diseases.

* Do you sit on any boards? As people gain experience and stature, they may be invited or encouraged to sit on boards. Being a director of a public, private or not-for-profit organization can place clients' personal assets at risk, even if the organization has its own insurance coverage.

The new understanding of property and casualty risks that financial planners gain from this experience will help them create a more comprehensive plan for their clients. In return, the agent or broker who has the knowledge and access to products and services that help the clients mitigate and finance their exposures will be given a seat at the table.

Andrew McElwee, a Best's Review columnist, is executive vice president of Chubb & Son and chief operating officer of Chubb Personal Insurance, Whitehouse Station, N.J. He can be reached at [e-mail].