New Policies

Progressive enhances coverage for commercial trucking accountsThe Progressive Group announced enhancements to its commercial trucking program. The new features include a 500-mile radius on liability, comprehensive coverage for all vehicles (including dump trucks), seasonal coverage for all vehicles, and a single physical damage deductible for all covered vehicles. The improvements mark the beginning of an overall expansion of Progressive’s truck program.For more information, visit www.commercialauto.progressive.com.American Safety Insurance enters E&S property market American Safety Insurance Services announced its entrance into the surplus-lines property market, offering both monoline property and commercial multiperil coverage. Targeted classes of business include habitational risks, mercantile/shopping centers, builders risk, vacant commercial property and light manufacturers.The CMP product can include property, inland marine, general liability and crime coverages. Policies are written on standard ISO forms on paper rated A-VIII by A.M. Best. Premiums begin at $10,000 for package policies and $5,000 for monoline property. Limits up to $15 million are available. Coverage is available in most states on a nonadmitted basis and on an admitted basis in New York and New Jersey.For more information, call (800) 388-3647 or visit www.amsafety.com.CNA Pro Open Brokerage expands management liability productCNA Pro Open Brokerage added general partnership and real estate investment trust endorsements to its Management Liability Solutions policy. The customized coverages address the liability needs of general partners, executives and employees of both privately held and publicly traded limited partnerships and real estate investment trusts. The enhancements are the latest in Open Brokerage’s product suite, with additional announcements planned for fidelity bonds, Side A coverage, management liability for private equity firms, and professional liability for insurance companies and miscellaneous professions.For more information, visit www.cnapro.com/html/Our_Products/OurProducts_DO.html.ELM Insurance Brokers announces suite of management liability productsELM Insurance Brokers announced Comprehensive Coverage Care, a suite of management liability products, including D&O, employment practice (with optional third-party extensions to eligible insureds), fiduciary liability, crime and professional liability.Target risks include accountants, architects and engineers, consultants, insurance brokers, real estate brokers, title agents, mortgage brokers and certain miscellaneous classes. Admitted coverage is available on a nationwide basis from an A-rated company. Limits can be shared or segregated; although the crime coverage is written almost exclusively on a segregated basis. Limits can range from $500,000 to $10 million.For more information, call (310) 322-1301 or visit www.e-o.com.K&K extends property program for sports, leisure and entertainment risksK&K Insurance Group introduced its Expanded Property Program, featuring stand-alone coverage with in-house capacity of up to $25 million per location. Additional limits may be available, based on underwriting criteria. The minimum deductible is $1,000, and coverage is written on admitted paper through a carrier rated A+ by A.M. Best. Terrorism coverage is included, with crime and inland marine coverages optional. The enhancements are available for all K&K programs, including arenas and stadiums, camps, gymnastic and martial arts schools, health and fitness clubs, and sports complexes.For more information, call (866) 554-4636 or e-mail [email protected].LIU and Lemme Insurance Group partner on accountants coverageLiberty International Underwriters, a division of Liberty Mutual Group, and Lemme Insurance Group have partnered to offer an expanded professional liability policy to accounting firms employing up to 100 accounting professionals. Available in 38 states and the District of Columbia, the new policy form is designed to cover accountants ranging from small tax preparation firms to large CPA audit firms.For more information, call Sam Rudman at (800) 943-8068 or e-mail [email protected].Navigators introduces cyber endorsement for lawyers liability policyThe Navigators Group announced that Navigators Pro, a division of Navigators Management Co., has introduced the Cyber Privacy InNAVation Coverage Endorsement for its primary lawyers professional liability policy. The new product provides enhanced professional liability protection for law firms legally obligated to pay covered losses related to a violation of the right to privacy or a privacy regulation, or the unauthorized disclosure of personal information, resulting from the performance of their duties. The coverage is underwritten by Navigators Insurance Co. and Navigators Specialty Insurance Co., which are both rated A by A.M. Best.For more information, visit www.managementliability.com.Markel Global Marine & Energy expands energy property capabilitiesMarkel Global Marine & Energy announced its Onshore Energy Property Division will write all oil field contractors equipment policies (hot oil, coil tubing, swabbing, franc, etc.), alongside drilling and workover rigs. Additionally, the SIC code occupancies will be expanded to include 3000-3089, encompassing rubber and miscellaneous plastic products. Also added are coal preparation plants, excluding mining exposures.For more information, visit www.markelcorp.com.Beazley introduces program for small, hard-to-place U.S. law firmsBeazley Group introduced a program for underwriting small law firms. Synergy Professional Associates Inc. of Kinnelon, N.J., will be the program administrator. The program is designed for firms employing one to 10 attorneys (but can accept up to 25 attorneys) that are hard-to-place because of past claims or difficult areas of practice. The program will consider all classes of business and is available on a surplus-lines basis in all states except Kentucky. Maximum limits available are $2 million per claim and $4 million aggregate.For more information, contact Ira Dawer at Synergy Professional Associates at (973) 995-0512, or visit www.synergy-ins.com.Interstate Healthcare has program for administrative medical directorsInterstate Healthcare announced a program for medical director liability insurance. This coverage protects physicians from vicarious liability arising from administrative duties and decisions in their capacities as part-time, full-time or volunteer medical directors. It is not designed to provide coverage for direct treatment of patients or consultations.Eligible classifications include medical spas, case management or disease management companies, small for-profit or not-for-profit clinics, workers compensation evaluation firms, vocational centers, sleep centers, non-professional sports teams, pain management clinics and medical libraries. Medical directors of long-term care facilities can also secure coverage through a companion program. Medical directors of large hospitals, diet centers, weight-loss centers and large health plans are not eligible.In most of the country, the annual premium is $3,500 for $1 million/$1 million limits, or $4,200 for $1 million/$3 million limits. The policy is underwritten by certain underwriters at Lloyd’s on a claims-made form.For more information, contact Chuck Marlin at (800) 419-5999, or e-mail [email protected].Markel expands gymnastics program to cheerleading gyms Markel Insurance Co. expanded its gymnastics program to include coverage for competitive cheerleading gyms. Coverage is available in all states except Hawaii. The admitted program features general liability limits of $500,000/$1.5 million or $1 million/$3 million; umbrella liability limits up to $5 million; coverage for building and contents, as well as for tanning beds, climbing walls and inflatables; accident medical limits up to $50,000; and business income and crime insurance. The program covers camps and clinics but not high school, college, adult or community recreation teams.For more information, visit www.markelcheerleading.com.Environmental Risk Managers offers pollution program for golf coursesEnvironmental Risk Managers Inc. announced PAR (pollution and remediation), a new pollution liability program for golf courses. The program includes sudden and gradual coverage, on-site and off-site pollution cleanup, third-party bodily injury, property damage and business interruption, and underground/above-ground storage tank coverage. Insurance is offered by an A.M. Best-rated A-VIII company and is available in all states.The program is offered on a stand-alone basis. A variety of options are available, and premiums start at $3,000.For more information, contact Chris Bunbury at ( 231) 256-2122, or e-mail [email protected].ACE European adds entity coverage to D&O policies for private businessesACE European Group announced Elite Entity, an extension providing entity coverage to its D&O policy. The extension is intended for small and midsize private companies. It covers damages, judgments, and settlements and defense costs for claims for wrongful acts, including breaches of trust and duty, errors and omissions and employment-related breaches.Brokers may obtain quotes and bind new business through ACE Online, the company’s extranet. The coverage is also available as an endorsement on existing D&O policies directly from ACE.For more information, visit www.aceeuropeangroup.com.Navigators announces specialty program divisionThe Navigators Group announced that its principal underwriting agency subsidiary, Navigators Management Co., has established a specialty program division. The division will focus on developing portfolios in a variety of specialty industry niches served by program administrators. Products underwritten by the division will include property, general liability and commercial automobile insurance.For more information, contact Rick Cullen at (847) 285-9037, or e-mail [email protected].Schinnerer enhances E&O program for commercial real estate firmsVictor O. Schinnerer & Co. Inc. announced several enhancements to the commercial segment of its real estate program. Its discrimination endorsement now includes an automatic sublimit of up to $100,000, while the environmental hazards endorsement will match the policy limits. Both endorsements are provided at no additional charge. The program is available to small and midsize commercial sales and leasing companies, and to residential companies providing commercial sales and leasing services.States that have approved the changes include Alaska, Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming and Washington, D.C. More states will be added in the coming months.For more information, visit www.Schinnerer.com.National Insurance Underwriters introduces homeowners programNational Insurance Underwriters, an affiliate of Nation Safe Drivers, introduced Homegard, a homeowners insurance program for hard-to-insure properties. The program is A-rated by A.M. Best and is currently available in 44 states. Policy features include guaranteed issue coverage up to $750,000, no credit scoring, coverage for owner- and tenant-occupied dwellings, coverage for vacant or seasonal dwellings, and all-risk perils coverage.For more information, contact Craig Calver at (800) 338-2680, Ext. 508, or visit www.niuw.com.Progressive Casualty announces excess deposit bond for community banksProgressive Casualty Insurance Co. announced an excess deposit bond for community banks. Now available in most states, the product is designed to address bankers’ needs to protect customer deposits that exceed amounts insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The new bond provides A+-rated insurance protection, enabling banks to attract and retain large-deposit accounts in an efficient and cost-effective manner.For more information, contact Tom Hruby at (800) 274-5222, or visit www.excessdepositbond.com.OTHER MARKET NEWSo Lexington Insurance Co., a member company of American International Group Inc., announced that it increased capacity for fire property insurance to $500 million from $250 million.For more information, contact Jennifer Wilkinson at (617) 330-4307, or e-mail [email protected].o QBE Insurance Group acquired the Praetorian Financial Group, a specialty insurer in New York. The acquisition completes QBE’s focused diversification strategy of creating four pillars within QBE the Americas: specialty insurance, regional insurance, reinsurance and Latin America. As a result of the purchases, QBE the Americas is now one of the Top 20 property and casualty insurers in the U.S., with over $4.6 billion in annual gross written premiums and an estimated combined policyholders’ surplus of $2 billion.o K&K Insurance Group began writing professional, amateur, intercollegiate and interscholastic sports risks, as well as motor sports events, facilities and race teams, with Scottsdale Insurance Co.’s admitted carrier National Casualty Co.For more information, visit www.kandkinsurance.com.o Willis Group Holdings Limited announced the acquisition of Chicago-based Insurance Noodle, an Internet distributor of U.S. small-business insurance. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.For more information, visit www.willis.com.o AmWINS Group Inc. acquired The American Equity Underwriters Inc., a national provider of insurance programs for maritime employers that has a special expertise in U.S. longshore and harbor workers compensation insurance.For more information, visit www.amwins.com.o Swett & Crawford announced it has expanded its global platform for risk placement to the commercial insurance marketplace worldwide through an exclusive partnership with Internex, CT, LLC. With the new capability, Swett & Crawford added worldwide resources in 125 countries.For more information, visit www.swett.como Tapco Underwriters Inc., a managing general agent/wholesaler in the excess and surplus market, announced its expansion into California and Texas. Offices opened in Los Angeles and Houston last month.For more information, visit gotapco.com.o The Hanover Insurance Group Inc. entered into a definitive agreement through which it will acquire Professionals Direct Inc. for $23.2 million. Professionals Direct is the Michigan-based holding company for the Professionals Direct organization, a provider of professional liability insurance for small and midsize law practices. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter.For more information, visit www.hanover.com.o Builders & Tradesmen’s Insurance Services redesigned its Web site. Improvements include a streamlined log-in process, automatic fill-in of some information on the additional insured request form, easier access to submissions, a “what’s new” page and instant response features.For more information, visit www.btisinc.com.