CAL understands the unique exposures of the professional services industry. Whether the entity is a law firm, accounting firm, human resource consultancy, bank, CFO for hire or any other knowledge-based services organizations, your advisor at CAL will help you establish an insurance program that suits your needs and budget. In addition, our Employee Benefits team can be brought in to consult on leveraging HR technologies while continuing to meet the important objectives clients have for employees and their families.
One of the most important areas of coverage for a professional organization, professional liability, also called malpractice or errors and omissions (E&O) is typically required within many contracts and should include defense costs and/or any settlement or judgement regarding allegations of inadequate work or negligent actions.
Workers’ compensation coverage is mandatory, and proper management of the program is essential. As coverage differs from state to state, based on varying state labor laws, it is important to keep your insurance advisor aware of new hires, especially when hiring in various states. New York, in particular, has severe fines for having employees without workers’ compensation coverage in place or added to the current policy.
General Liability is the starting point for allegations of bodily injury and property damage suffered by a third party. This line of coverage will almost always be requested for lease(s) and contracts.
Cyber insurance should have coverage for both first and third party exposures. A robust program will also include cyber crime coverage. Limited cyber coverage can be embedded within a property, general or professional liability policy, which may or may not be the right solution. Your CAL advisor will know more on which platform is most appropriate.
This covers tangible assets such as computers, office furniture and equipment.
Your operations may include the need for company vehicles. Liability does not just stop at the owned vehicles of the organization, but is also a concern when employees are driving their own vehicles on the company’s behalf. Coverage to protect the company owned vehicles in case of theft or damage is referred to as “comprehensive” and “collision” coverage, and both should be added in most cases.
When entering a contract that requires higher liability limits or to protect additional assets, the excess liability/umbrella policy is recommended. The coverage typically exceeds the general, auto and employer liability and is a part of a workers’ compensation policy.
A properly established D&O program should be considered for most professional services organizations. In addition, board members may require that a D&O be in place before agreeing to take a seat. Each D&O policy should have three sides of protection: One side for the directors and officers not indemnified by the entity, one for the directors and officers indemnified by the entity, and one for the entity itself.
EPLI can stand alone or be added to a D&O program. This coverage protects the entity from allegations such as wrongful termination, harassment (including sexual harassment) and discrimination. The limit should provide coverage for defense costs as well as any settlement or judgment, when allowable by the policy.
Like EPLI, Fiduciary Liability can stand alone or be added to the D&O program. This protects the fiduciary(ies) of the organization from allegations of mishandling the company’s retirement plan(s). The policy covers the legal expenses of defending against the claim as well as the financial losses the plan may have incurred due to errors, omissions or breach of fiduciary duty.
Operating internationally and/or when employees travel abroad, this coverage buttons up exposure outside the United States.
