Professional Liability Insurance

About Professional Liability

America's first professional liability policies surfaced in the late 1800s when physicians formed mutual insurers to cover malpractice suits, but the modern errors and omissions (E&O) market took shape after Lloyd's of London issued architect and engineer policies in the 1950s.¹

By 1976, the Insurance Services Office released standardized lawyers' professional liability forms, ushering in claims-made coverage and retro dates that still define today's underwriting. Hospitals, engineers, and brokers soon followed with bespoke wording to match their contractual duties.²

Now, digital deliverables, AI tools, and global supply chains create new liabilities, WTW notes that technology-focused contractors and consultants are driving the sharpest E&O exposure growth, so we benchmark Rockland County firms against the latest policy language before quoting.³

Coverage Highlights

Professional liability policies defend your firm's advice, designs, and deliverables when clients allege negligence or breach of duty.

• Claims-made coverage & tail options: Maintain protection for prior acts and purchase extended reporting periods when retiring, merging, or switching carriers.¹
• Defense outside or inside the limit: Some forms keep legal costs separate from the limit while others erode it; we negotiate the structure that matches your risk tolerance.²
• Project-specific or practice towers: Large engagements can carry their own aggregate while routine work shares a separate tower, preventing one contract from burning the entire program.³
• Subconsultant & JV coverage: Brings downstream partners or joint ventures under the policy when contracts require you to vouch for their work.⁴
• Licensing board defense & disciplinary expense:  Pays attorneys and penalties tied to professional board investigations—even if no client suit is filed.⁵
• Technology, media, & privacy endorsements:  Expand coverage to software errors, copyright claims, or data exposures stemming from digital deliverables.⁶

Rising Costs

Average claim severity is up 20% since 2020, largely due to social inflation and jumbo defense verdicts, prompting carriers to raise deductibles and premiums.¹

A 2024 Architect & Engineer survey by Beazley cites design revisions, staffing shortages, and supply-chain substitutions as top claim drivers, with half of respondents reporting at least one claim in the past five years.²

Technology, media, and telecom E&O is among the hardest-hit segments for 2025 renewals, with rate increases between 5% and 12% even on clean accounts, a trend we infer will also affect New York IT consultants and marketing agencies.³

Cheaper Premiums

• Invest in peer review & QA/QC: Data shows firms with formal review checkpoints cut claim frequency by up to 30%.¹
• Upgrade contract management: Limiting consequential damages, clarifying scope, and avoiding broad indemnities are key to preferred pricing.²
• Track lessons learned & pre-claims: Carrier hotlines and early notification often resolve issues before they mature into reportable claims, protecting loss runs.³

What We Do

We market your office with top professional liability carriers, leveraging decades of experience to secure competitive rates for essential coverages. As your practice evolves, we can review your policy annually to ensure adequate limits, appropriate endorsements, and favorable rates.