Researching professional liability insurance companies for architects/engineers. The markets for professional liability are abundant in the marketplace. That doesn’t always mean that they are good policies and it’s good to do due diligence for your firm to ensure that you do have a reliable insurance company.
Your first resource for information about a professional liability insurance company is your firm’s insurance agent. Your agent has firsthand experience with the insurance companies from servicing to claims and can steer your firm in the right direction for a policy.
A.M. Best is another avenue to investigate for more information about an insurance company. They provide ratings and financial strength for insurance companies worldwide. https://web.ambest.com/home
Association websites are another helpful resource for insurance companies. The American Institute of Architects https://www.aia.org/ and The American Council of Engineering Companies https://www.acec.org/ provide resources on their websites for architecture/engineering firms.
For professional liability policies it is important to have an insurance company that has a department that is specific to architects/engineers. There are some insurance companies in the marketplace that may have a policy but not a dedicated department for the policy. This is significant because a design firm’s work is very specific, and it is good to have an insurance company that not only understands this from an underwriting standpoint but from a claims standpoint. Your firm wants to be sure your claim is being handled by a claims representative and attorney that is familiar with construction defect claims.
Reading the professional liability policy and comparing it to other policies is also a useful way to understand the differences between insurance companies. There are insurance companies that will offer the bare minimum of coverage and some that will offer broader coverage.
If your firm has any questions with regards to choosing an insurance company for your firm’s professional lability policy, please call, or email, your Professional Underwriter agent for assistance.