Umbrella/Excess

Can your business afford a payment that exceeds a million dollars? Think of accidents involving vehicles that, today, are much safer than 5 or 10 years ago. That means that accidental deaths are less likely while the chance of severe head injury has increased. Severe head trauma can send a claim's cost soaring. It may take up to seven years to determine the ultimate extent of injury. Recovery is often slow and sporadic. These elements combine to make regular insurance coverage insufficient.

An Umbrella Liability policy could be the difference between bankruptcy and an on-going business venture. The Umbrella policy would take over where the business auto policy stopped, providing defense coverage and additional limits to pay large judgments.

A Commercial Umbrella Liability Policy, increasingly referred to as an excess policy, can provide an additional layer of insurance protection to handle major losses. It potentially may provide excess limits over General Liability, Auto Liability, Employers Liability and other underlying liability. A complete insurance is needed to identify underlying coverage.

The coverage form is still not standardized, varying greatly among companies and some jurisdictions may create unique coverage issues. Punitive damages are an example. Some states only permit responsible parties to pay punitive damages; others allow them to be paid by insurers.