I keep hoping that there will be fewer vendor managers.  Here in Vermont we have precious few title abstractors to cover the entire state, and literally hundreds of VMs. Most VMs send us anywhere from one search a month to one search a year.  They still expect instantaneous turnaround time and hassle us as to price.  To my way of thinking, there are way too many VMs in this world.  They are going to compete themselves out of business, and what will be left  are the title abstractors who are doing the original research that can't be done any other way.  We can hand off our research to pretty much any VM, their value-added contribution is sheer paper-pushing.

Not to mention a big concern of mine, which is what VMs do with our research once they get it.  We frequently find ineffective mortgage satisfactions in our Land Records. We frequently find poorly drafted deeds and legal descriptions.  Although we report these matters, it doesn't appear that the VM companies always move to clear the clouded title issues, nor does it appear that the VMs utilize Vermont legal counsel when they attempt fixes.

I carry E&O, lots of it.  My reasons are double: first to protect myself from my own mistakes and those of my town clerks, and second to protect myself from the VMs.