Norton keeps a rolling tally of the 50 largest D&O claims incurred in the last eight years by publicly traded companies. The dollar amount of those claims continues to climb, with the 50th largest D&O claim on the 2014 list more than double that of 2006. Average claim severity over that same time period has also doubled to $58 million, according to NERA Economic Consulting. Part of the increase in claim value is due to increased regulatory scrutiny of public companies.

“Agencies that regulate publicly traded companies are better funded, are more visible, and are more comfortable sharing and publicizing the value of the success of their actions,” says Anthony Galban, senior vice president and global D&O product manager, Chubb Specialty Insurance.

In addition to regulatory claims, publicly traded companies face increased loss severity from securities-related class actions and merger objections. In 2014, more than 90% of merger & acquisition deals valued over $100 million were litigated, with plaintiffs' attorneys typically alleging that the board of directors breached its duties by conducting a flawed sales process that failed to achieve maximum sale value to shareholders.

(Photo: Shutterstock/Aysezgicmeli)

One of the largest non-regulatory cases last year was a $275 million settlement that mass media company Vivendi paid to resolve a shareholder derivative lawsuit related to its sale of a stake in Activision Blizzard Inc. According to Activision, the settlement was paid by “multiple insurance companies, along with various defendants.”

Although small, privately held companies are generally spared from the regulatory and shareholder action that publicly traded and large private companies face, they are not immune from D&O claims. “The areas that have been troublesome in D&O on the private side are theft of intellectual property and breach of noncompete clauses,” says David A. Schooler, partner and trial attorney specializing in professional liability at Minneapolis law firm Briggs and Morgan.

Although these types of claims are not new, the growth of electronic information has been a game-changer in both the cause and defense of claims. “The battleground is over electronic data,” Schooler says. “No matter how sophisticated people are, you invariably end up taking something, putting it on a thumb drive or sending it to your home e-mail, putting companies at risk. Computer forensics involved in defending against claims are complicated and expensive, which is just one reason why private companies need D&O.”

Counterintuitive pricing prevails

Although claim severity is on the increase, pricing on excess layers of D&O has remained competitive, with high-single-digit decreases seen on average accounts and even stronger competition for the best risks.

“Buyers are currently very fortunate to have an overflow of excess D&O capacity,” Norton says. “There can be 30 or 40 potential writers out there for a particular account.”

In the primary market, carriers are still trying to get increases but are able to achieve only low single-digit price bumps. “If anything, that pricing line is trending downward toward a zero increase on primary-attachment renewals,” says Norton.

D&O coverage also has trended in a direction counterintuitive to increased severity. “There has been steady pressure on carriers to make terms and conditions more expansive,” Galban says.

Brokers have steadily chipped away at carrier exclusions, including insured-versus-insured, pollution, and conduct-related limitations. Side-A D&O coverage, which protects executives against claims that a company cannot legally or financially cover, has been broadened with no-exclusion language and difference-in-condition excess forms that cover gaps in primary policies. Even though broad coverage is available, however, brokers have to know how to get it.

Complexity can be a barrier

“Complexity is a barrier to breaking into this market,” Norton says. “Doing business in D&O almost requires you to know a secret code. If you know what to ask for, carriers will generally say yes and may not even charge for it—but you have to know what to ask.”

Complexity also comes in the form of non-standard coverage. Although D&O forms share the same basic building blocks of Side-A, -B, and -C coverage, each insurer has its unique coverage wrinkles. In general, Side-Acoverage indemnifies individual directors and officers when they are not indemnified by their company because of legal or financial limitations; Side-B provides coverage for the organization when it indemnifies directors and officers; and Side-C provides coverage to publicly traded corporations for securities claims brought against it.

The insurance cycle itself also challenges brokers. “It's not unusual for publicly traded companies to request dozens of wording changes to their policy each year. There is a lot of activity on a typical D&O policy,” says Galban.

Brokers determined to break into the market can make use of the services provided by insurers. “Most carriers are good about providing material that can help you through a basic conversation on D&O with a business owner,” Galban notes. “In advising a business of any scale, it does you no harm to at least present the idea of D&O.”

Brokers also can explore the relatively untapped market of privately held companies that are less likely to purchase the coverage than publicly traded counterparts, most of which carry coverage. “We are a long way from saturating the market for D&O purchases by private companies,” Galban says.

(Photo: Shutterstock/dotshock)

Smaller businesses need D&O coverage, too

In a Chubb survey, only 28% of privately held companies purchase D&O insurance. That low number exists in part because business owners mistakenly believe that they are protected by general liability insurance and in part because they believe their exposure to loss is small. The challenge for brokers is to convince business owners otherwise.

“There's a strong feeling on the part of smaller, family-run companies that they don't need this coverage. They say 'my customers love me, my employees love me, so I don't need D&O.' Unfortunately, for many companies, learning about the risks comes from experience,” says Galban.

In its survey, Chubb found that D&O suits cost private companies an average of nearly $700,000, including judgments, settlements, fines, and legal fees.

“Agents need to educate the customer as to the risks they're facing,” says Schooler. Those risks include allegations of breach of fiduciary duty, false adverting and other claims that attempt to “pierce the corporate veil” by targeting directors and officers, as well as disputes among business owners and family members.

“Professional services and financial firms, architects, engineers—they have no idea that a single claim will put them out of business just from defense costs alone,” says Schooler. “A couple thousand dollars a year in premium for a policy is peanuts compared to having to absorb the cost of one lawsuit.”