Finding right insurance coverage takes persistence

Six years ago, Robert Bland was selling health insurance andfeeling increasingly frustrated by the lack of comparative rateinformation available.

When he realized no one was tracking rates, he set up his15-person data collection firm, Quotesmith, in northwest suburbanPalatine, to serve insurance brokers and insurers. Now he isconsidering offering rate information to the public for a nominalcharge.

Even so, with some 1,700 insurance companies doing business inthe United States, finding the right coverage for your firm takesresearch and persistence.

"My advice to the small-business owner is to talk to anindependent agent or broker," said Bland, president …