Client retention rate
Also called: retention rate, book retention, attrition rate
Client retention rate is the share of an agency's clients or households who are still clients after a period, usually a year.
Retention differs from persistency: persistency counts policies, retention counts relationships. A client who replaces one policy with another through the same agency is retained, even if a policy lapsed.
Measuring retention at household level gives the most honest view of how many relationships the agency keeps.
Small improvements in retention compound every year, because retained clients keep paying renewals and buy again.
"Our client retention rate counts households, not policies, so replacements inside the agency don't look like losses."
How do you measure client retention in an insurance agency?
Count the households that were clients at the start of a period and are still clients at the end, divided by the households at the start. Track it yearly and by agent.