Directors And Officers Insurance | D&O Insurance UK

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Directors' & Officers'
Insurance

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Need a directors' and officers' insurance quote?  Let the independent specialists at your local Coversure compare their markets to find you the D&O insurance that's right for you.  Your local Coversure office can offer you tailor-made protection, so start your quote today.

Directors' & Officers'
Insurance

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What Is Directors' & Officers' Liability Insurance?

Directors’ and officers’ insurance – also known as D&O insurance – insures an organisation’s senior people from financial loss should they become involved in legal disputes arising from its activities. Cover can extend to defence costs arising from criminal and regulatory investigations or trials. Historically, D&O insurance was a protection that was used mainly by large corporations. As we have become a more compliance-heavy world with greater use of the courts to settle disputes, it’s a policy that many small and medium-sized businesses take advantage of. With D&O insurance through Coversure, you can get quality protection against events such as:
  • Claims for either losses or unsatisfactory returns
  • Negligence
  • Failure to comply with regulations or laws
  • Financial reporting errors
  • Inaccurate or inadequate disclosure

Who Needs Directors' And Officers' Insurance?

D&O liability is a flexible policy that can cover senior members of an organisation – be that a business, a charity, or some other entity, such as a union or a trade body.  It can also protect a wide range of individuals, including:

  • Executive and non-executive officers, thanks to its unrestricted definition of what a director or officer is
  • Managerial and supervisory employees who aren’t board-level directors
  • Employees as co-defendants in action brought against the organisation
  • Retired directors other than those who retired because of disqualification from holding office
  • Non-executive directors and outside directors who serve on an external entity’s board at the request of its directors
  • All employees, when it comes to employment-related wrongful acts

If you’d like some D&O insurance advice, please contact your local Coversure.  They’ll be happy to give you the help you need to keep you and your organisation safe.

What can Directors' & Officers' Insurance cover?

Directors’ and Officers’ insurance offers a package of protection that allows you to cover multiple risks on a single policy*.  It can be tailored to your needs and often includes perils such as:

  • Employment practises and human resource issues such as being sued for constructive dismissal or unfair dismissal
  • Failure to comply with regulations or laws
  • Negligence or failure by directors or officers to carry out their job adequately
  • Financial and or other company reporting errors
  • Inaccurate or inadequate disclosure of an organisation’s performance
  • Misrepresentation in a prospectus
  • Claims arising from investors or shareholders who blame executives personally for either losses or unsatisfactory returns on their investment
  • Legal action brought in response to someone making decisions that exceed the authority granted to them as a company officer. In other words, someone taking an action that they were not allowed to take.  Examples of such claims include:
  • A customer makes a slander allegation against a company owner following an argument at a meeting. Having D&O protection in place, the company was able to avoid court action by making a compensation payment that was covered by the policy
  • Investors in a home improvements manufacturer sued a company’s directors for losses incurred by them overstating the financial health of the business
  • A worker is sacked for gross misconduct after assaulting a colleague at work and bringing the company into disrepute. The employee sued for unfair dismissal, saying he was provoked.  The case failed, and the business was able to claim back the legal expenses it incurred defending it
  • Breaches of fiduciary duties (the exercise of discretionary power in the interests of another person) owed to the company and shareholders
  • Shareholder actions
  • Corporate manslaughter
  • Creditor claims
  • Competitor claims

The best way to find out how much protection you need, and which kind is to contact your local Coversure team.  They’ll be able to advise you as to what you need and create a package of covers for you.

How Much Does D&O Liability Insurance Cost?

While we can’t give a definitive answer as we believe in building cover around our client’s needs, the cost of your directors’ and officers’ cover will depend on factors such as:

  • The size of your business
  • The type of work you do
  • The range of cover you wish to have
  • The value of individual clients – if you are working with large organisations, then if something goes wrong, the claims are likely to be higher than if you work with small businesses
  • Where your clients are based – if you have clients in the U.S. where, according to S&P, the number of claims is rising, and compensation pay-outs are on the increase – your D&O premium may be higher
  • If you have any employees
  • Your D&O liability claims history

The best way to find out how much protection you need is to contact your local Coversure. They’ll be able to advise you as to what you need and create a package of Directors’ & Officers’ cover for you.

Directors' & Officers' Insurance FAQ

Directors’ and officers’ insurance can be a complex area of cover, so to help you get the protection you need, here is Coversure’s D&O liability insurance frequently asked questions.  We hope they will be of use, but if you’d like some personalised independent advice, contact your local Coversure office.

If your organisation has a board of directors or trustees, in the case of a charity, D&O insurance can be seen as essential.  If your business has investors, they will usually require having it in place as a condition for funding, as the cost of possible legal action may outweigh the worth of a small company.  In the case of non-profits, protection is vital for individuals whose personal assets may be at risk in the event of a claim

That will depend on factors such as:

  • The size of your business
  • The type of work you do
  • The range of cover you wish to have
  • The value of individual clients – if you are working with large organisations, then if something goes wrong, the claims are likely to be higher than if you work with small businesses
  • Where your clients are based – if you have clients in the U.S. where, according to S&P, the number of claims is rising, and compensation pay-outs are on the increase – your D&O premium may be higher
  • If you have any employees
  • Your D&O liability claims history

Getting a quote is easy; contact your local Coversure office or start your D&O insurance quote today

No, but given the level of protection it affords organisations, it’s well worth considering

Several stakeholders can bring action against a business or other entity:

  • Stockholders, investors, creditors, banks
  • A supervisory board
  • The company’s employees
  • Regulators, state authorities, unions
  • Customers, suppliers, and competitors

Like most insurance policies, directors’ and officers’ cover comes with exclusions.  In this case, it is things like:

  • Fraudulent, criminal, or intentional non-compliant acts
  • When directors have acted for personal profit or obtained illegal remuneration
  • Recovery of wages, fines, taxes, penalties, or multiplied damages
  • Action brought against your business or organisation over the advice it has given – for that, you’ll need professional indemnity insurance
  • Litigation brought against your business or organisation over its actions – for that, you’ll need public liability insurance
  • Action brought against your business or organisation by employees owing to losses or injury connected to their work – for that, you’ll need employers’ liability insurance

Need a Directors' & Officers' Insurance quote?

If you’d like a Directors’ & Officers’ Insurance quote from Coversure, please contact your local Coversure office or start your quote here. Our independent brokers will search their markets to find you the right policy at the right price to keep your business protected.

Professional Indemnity

Public Liability

* Policy information is correct at the time of writing. Policy details, limits, and exclusions are subject to insurer’ changes. When taking out a policy, your local Coversure office will be able to advise you of the specifics of your cover.

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