Professional Liability

A common misconception that executives and boards have is that alleged misconduct by directors or companies is covered under other liability policies, such as E&O, CGL or another professional liability policy. High risk industries need different risk analysis to address global trends affecting D&O claims.

The most popular allegations requiring defence by officers and directors include:

• Breach of fiduciary duties
• Giving wrong or unprofessional advice
• Acting beyond the scope of their authority
• Authorizing excessive company spending
• Failure to supervise subordinates or company affairs properly
• Making unauthorized company borrowing

• Damage awards
• Settlements and legal defence costs
• Protection for the assets of the organization and the personal assets of its directors and officers

Additional coverages available

• Spousal Extension
• Outside Non-profit Directorship
• Kidnap Expense coverage
• Key Person Recruitment
• Extended Legal Costs
• Claims Expenses coverage

• Acquisitions or divestitures
• Mergers
• Foreign investment (especially in the USA)
• Public offerings
• Management buy-outs
• Reduced dividends
• Failure to comply with regulation
• Environmental breaches
• Shareholder actions
• Cyber security breaches
• Sexual misconduct
• Waste or mismanagement of corporate assets
• Employee dismissal
• Boardroom dispute
• Breach of contract
• Liquidation of the company
• Change in ownership of the company’s share capital

We work closely with our underwriters to offer risk assessments and minimize the exposures for global trends, personal punitive actions, environmental impacts, employee driven law suits, cyber risks, sexual misconduct and mergers & acquisitions.

PLI, PII or E&O, no matter what you call it, Errors & Omissions is a form of business insurance designed to help professional advice, consulting and service-providing individuals and companies protect themselves against a negligence claim made by a client in a civil lawsuit for allegedly giving wrong advice, error in service, or incorrect data/information to clients.

Fact

According to Geoff White, Underwriting Manager and Head of Barbican’s Specialist eRisks Division, “I estimate around 60% of E&O claims are to do with breach of contract. Another claim we commonly see is breach of intellectual property rights, usually where source code has been used in another product, either intentionally or unintentionally.”

• Claims made policy
• First dollar defence
• Defence costs in addition to the limits of liability
• Defence coverage for disciplinary proceedings
• Spousal and domestic partner liability coverage
• Worldwide territorial coverage
• Employment Practices Liability Defence Costs Extension
• Outside Directorship liability Defence Costs Extension
• Life Operations (policy E&O limits) Sub limits of $1M/$2million for independent agents
• Fraudulent Acts Endorsement included for Life/Mutual fund Agents.
•  Judgment, penalties, fines, settlements, resulting from the allegations breach of professional services or misrepresentation
• Misleading advice and conflict of interest
• Wrongful business practices

Absolutely anyone who provides the following services should carry adequate E&O insurance.

• Architects
• Engineers
• Project Managers
• Consultants
• Credit and debt Counsellors
• Medical Professionals
• Law firms
• Executive search firms
• Financial consultants
•  Management firms
•  Software developers
•  Insurance Agents or Brokers

Understanding risk mitigation starts with an overview of service industry contracts and incorporates best practices for administering accounts, processes to document client interactions, and having your customer sign off on decisions and recommendations before implementing them. We call it CYA, but it is the start to mitigating an E&O claim.

Our innovative insurance products are modular and we can help you design a policy and best practices that is geared to a broad spectrum of specialty services. When a broker comes across a risk that seems uninsurable, PMU Specialty will review all risk classes. Send us any E&O application to info@pmuspecialty.ca.

Most physicians in Canada are members of the Canadian Medical Protective Association (CMPA) and believe that this provides them with malpractice insurance. But this is not the case: the CMPA is not an insurance company; their assistance to physicians is available strictly on a discretionary basis. The CMPA Council has full discretion to limit, decline or terminate assistance without reason.

Claimants can still file a notice of civil claim  and most malpractice suits will name as defendants the physician, hospital (or private clinic), and hospital staff that provided negligent care because of the collaborative nature of medical care.

Medical malpractice claims are comprised of:

• Duty of care
• Standard of care
• Foreseeability
• Causation
• Substantial damages

Medical malpractice insurance coverages:

• Lawyers fees and court costs
• Arbitration costs
• Settlement costs
• Punitive and compensatory damages
• Medical damages

Min Premiums of $2,500 and higher

PMU Specialty has an innovative product combination for specified risk classes.

Section 1: Medical Malpractice Liability (“Claims Made”):
Limits range from $1 million – $10 Million any one claim and in the annual aggregate

Section 2: Commercial General Liability (“Claims Made”)
Limits range from $1 million – $10 Million any one Claim but in the annual aggregate in respect of liability arising from the insured’s products and completed operations

Included

• Products liability
• Pollution liability
• Public liability

Sub-limits of CGL liability

• T.L.L. limit: $250,000
• Medical payments: $10,000 Any one Person $50,000 any one accident
• Personal  & advertising injury limit: $1,000,000
• Pollution sub-limit: $1,000,000 aggregate-sudden and accidental (120 hours)
• Products recall expenses: $50,000
• Employee benefits Liability: $1,000,000 aggregate
• Forest fire fighting expenses $500,000 aggregate
• Employment practices: $25,000 aggregate – Claims made basis/RDI
• Non-owned auto: $1,000,000 to include SEF99 & $50,000, SEF 94

Min Premiums of $3,500 and higher

• Hospitals
• Senior Care homes
• Specialty and multidisciplinary clinics – Veterinarians, Dental, Psychiatrists etc
• Individual practitioners
• Associations of practitioners
•  Miscellaneous medical entities/exposures

Medical malpractice claims are expensive. A defendant will want to have the best experienced legal counsel involved. Medical malpractice lawyers have special training to defend in the field of medical malpractice. Our innovative insurance products are modular and we build a policy and best practices that is geared to a broad spectrum of medical services.