To meet the needs of brokers and their clients, Hiscox has grown its professional liability portfolio to include admitted miscellaneous professional liability, privacy/data breach and technology E&O.
PRODUCT: Hiscox Pro professional liability admitted coverage
COMPANY: Hiscox Insurance Company Inc.
BEST RATING: A (Excellent)
AVAILABILITY: Coverage is available to Hiscox-appointed brokers.
FOCUS: To guarantee the needs of brokers and their clients, Hiscox has grown its professional liability portfolio to include admitted miscellaneous professional liability (MPL), privacy/data breach and technology E&O. “Ultimately, these Hiscox Pro options are what make it possible for leaders to be courageous—to take the steps they need to grow,” says Jim Whetstone, professions practice leader for Hiscox. “They’re able to focus less on risks and more on long-term business potential.”
UNDERWRITING: The new policies—all of which carry a maximum $10 million limit—reflect the realities of a more litigious, technology-driven business environment. Whetstone says Hiscox included broker-requested details in all three products. “The reality is that situations happen,” he explains. “And even if mistakes aren’t made, there can be accusations—so of course, companies need protection.”
MPL: includes a broad definition of insured, third-party discrimination coverage, coverage for independent contractors and joint ventures, a 50/50 consent to settlement clause, defense of licensing proceedings and subpoena assistance, punitive damages (where insurable by the most favorable applicable jurisdiction), personal and advertising injury and industry-specific causes of exposure. The product also includes express carve-back for covered liability that would exist in the absence of a contract, warranty or guarantee.
Privacy/Data Breach: covers both first- and third-party liabilities arising from a data breach event, including defense costs and indemnity as permitted by law, whether it’s a claim for a statutory violation, regulatory investigation, negligence or breach of contract, including where liable for the costs to reissue cards and for the fraudulent charges. Coverage is provided to the full policy limits for both PCI fines and assessments. Also included are forensic costs, credit or identity protection required as part of a liability judgment and both negligence and breach of contract claims arising out of a breach of credit card details, including PCI fines, penalties and assessments. Clients can also access tools, education and vendor services for both pre-breach protection and post-breach recovery.
Technology E&O: covers broad intellectual property and affirmative breach of contract options, including unintentional breach of a written contract, as well as software copyright and negligence, such as instances when there is failure to use reasonable care, negligent misrepresentation or negligence with regard to network security or a privacy/data breach event. Optional coverage is available for data breach cost and expense, entity-wide privacy and security liability, online advertising and multimedia liability, hacker damage to data, cyber business interruption or cyber extortion.
General liability is available for packaging with MPL and technology E&O or on a stand-alone basis.
MINIMUM PREMIUMS: $650 for MPLI and $750 for privacy/data breach and technology E&O.
TARGET: Small-medium companies, defined as:
- $25 million or less in annual revenue for MPLI and technology E&O
- $200 million or less (with less than 1 million sensitive records) for privacy/data breach
- Past claims threshold of $150 thousand or less in the past five years for all three options
The industries with the strongest appetites include:
- MPLI: advertisers, associations, employment agencies, public relations services, event planners and promoters and environmental, marketing and management consultants
- Privacy: agriculture, construction, entertainment industry, manufacturing, media firms, professional services and publishing firms
- Technology: internet service providers, managed helpdesk services, telecommunications, and software developers, publishers, and testing and IT consulting, staffing and training firms.
COVERAGE TERRITORY: All 50 states and Washington, D.C.
CONTACT: David Egosi, national underwriting leader for MPL; Hiscox; 520 Madison Ave 32nd Floor, New York, NY 10022; 646-442-8286.
Amy Skidmore is an IA contributor.
