Alliance Risk vs Cowbell: How Do They Compare for Crime Insurance?

Cowbell's Zurich-underwritten crime module is reached only through appointed Zurich wholesalers, for private companies under 250 employees and $50M in assets; Alliance Risk is a brokerage placing crime for businesses that handle cash, payments or sensitive data.

Cowbell’s crime cover is a Zurich module built for private companies with fewer than 250 employees and under $50 million in assets, reachable only through an appointed wholesale broker; Alliance Risk places crime coverage without published size caps and lists the specific frauds it covers. ^1,^2,³

What Are the Key Differences Between Alliance Risk and Cowbell Crime Insurance?

Who Can Buy It and How

You can't buy Cowbell’s crime cover directly: it is one module of Zurich’s Select Plus management-liability product, reached only by appointed Zurich wholesalers through Cowbell’s platform, and aimed at private companies under 250 employees and $50 million in assets. Alliance Risk is a brokerage that places crime coverage for businesses handling cash, payments or sensitive data, companies with accounting or billing teams, nonprofits with volunteer financial oversight, and finance, retail, healthcare or logistics firms, with no published size cap. Choose Cowbell if you are a small private company whose broker can reach a Zurich wholesaler and you also want D&O or other management-liability modules; choose Alliance Risk if you are larger than Cowbell’s target or want a broker to place crime on its own. ³ ⁴ ¹

What the Cover Spells Out

Cowbell describes its crime module in one line: theft, fraud and embezzlement by employees or third parties. Alliance Risk lists much more, which gives you a checklist to test any quote against: forgery, fraudulent electronic funds transfer, social-engineering impersonation, burglary and robbery, with client-property theft by endorsement. It also names exclusions: owner or partner dishonesty, hacking losses (a cyber policy covers those), business income unless endorsed, and losses not discovered during the policy period. ³ ¹

Price, Limits and Insurer

Only Alliance Risk gives a price signal: typical annual premiums from $500–$2,000 for small businesses up to $10,000–$50,000+ for large enterprises. Neither publishes crime limits or retentions. Cowbell and Zurich say the module is written on Zurich admitted paper, meaning a licensed Zurich insurer issues it; Alliance Risk doesn’t name the insurer it would use. ¹ ⁴

What Should You Confirm in Alliance Risk and Cowbell Crime Insurance Quotes?

Ask Alliance Risk which insurer it is placing and for the policy’s crime limits and retentions. ¹
Check whether Cowbell’s module covers the social-engineering and funds-transfer fraud Alliance Risk lists, and at what sublimit. ¹ ³

Alliance Risk vs Cowbell Crime Insurance Compared

Alliance Risk vs Cowbell: Crime Insurance: documented features by provider

Criteria	Alliance Risk Crime Insurance	Cowbell / Zurich Select Plus Crime Coverage
Who It’s For	Alliance Risk lists businesses that handle cash, payments or sensitive data, companies with accounting, billing or procurement teams, nonprofits with volunteer financial oversight, and organizations in finance, retail, healthcare or logistics as common crime insurance buyers. ¹Company-reported. Crime product page, Who Needs Crime Insurance? section.	Cowbell targets this crime module at private companies with under 250 employees and under $50M in assets, across the same target industries listed for the broader Select Plus product. ³Company-reported. FAQ 'What size accounts are targeted?' and Target industries list.
Coverage Features	Alliance Risk's crime insurance page covers employee theft and embezzlement, forgery or alteration of checks or documents, fraudulent electronic funds transfer, social engineering fraud and impersonation, and burglary, robbery and safe burglary, with theft of client property available by endorsement. ¹Company-reported. Crime product page, What Does Crime Insurance Cover? section; actual policy structure depends on the carrier and the policy as issued. Alliance Risk says its crime coverage excludes business income loss from crime unless endorsed, cyber breach or hacking (which it says falls under a cyber policy instead), losses not discovered during the policy period, and dishonest acts by company owners or partners. ¹Company-reported. Crime product page, What Doesn't Crime Insurance Cover? section.	Cowbell describes crime coverage as protecting against losses resulting from criminal acts such as theft, fraud, and embezzlement committed by employees or third parties. ³Company-reported. FAQ 'What is the difference between management liability and D&O?'.
Role in This Line	Alliance Risk arranges crime insurance placements as a brokerage; the crime page describes the coverage it places rather than an Alliance-issued policy. ^1,²Company-reported. Crime product page and the general brokerage disclosure on the coverage catalogue page.	Crime coverage is one module within Cowbell's distribution of Zurich's Select Plus management liability product; Cowbell operates the platform, Zurich underwrites the module. Zurich's own page lists 'Crime Insurance' as one of the four modules a buyer can combine. ^3,⁴Company-reported. Management liability page intro and module list; Zurich page module-name section.

Criteria

Alliance Risk Crime Insurance

Cowbell / Zurich Select Plus Crime Coverage

Who It’s For

Alliance Risk lists businesses that handle cash, payments or sensitive data, companies with accounting, billing or procurement teams, nonprofits with volunteer financial oversight, and organizations in finance, retail, healthcare or logistics as common crime insurance buyers. ¹Company-reported. Crime product page, Who Needs Crime Insurance? section.

Cowbell targets this crime module at private companies with under 250 employees and under $50M in assets, across the same target industries listed for the broader Select Plus product. ³Company-reported. FAQ 'What size accounts are targeted?' and Target industries list.

Coverage Features

Alliance Risk's crime insurance page covers employee theft and embezzlement, forgery or alteration of checks or documents, fraudulent electronic funds transfer, social engineering fraud and impersonation, and burglary, robbery and safe burglary, with theft of client property available by endorsement. ¹Company-reported. Crime product page, What Does Crime Insurance Cover? section; actual policy structure depends on the carrier and the policy as issued.

Alliance Risk says its crime coverage excludes business income loss from crime unless endorsed, cyber breach or hacking (which it says falls under a cyber policy instead), losses not discovered during the policy period, and dishonest acts by company owners or partners. ¹Company-reported. Crime product page, What Doesn't Crime Insurance Cover? section.

Cowbell describes crime coverage as protecting against losses resulting from criminal acts such as theft, fraud, and embezzlement committed by employees or third parties. ³Company-reported. FAQ 'What is the difference between management liability and D&O?'.

Role in This Line

Alliance Risk arranges crime insurance placements as a brokerage; the crime page describes the coverage it places rather than an Alliance-issued policy. ^1,²Company-reported. Crime product page and the general brokerage disclosure on the coverage catalogue page.

Crime coverage is one module within Cowbell's distribution of Zurich's Select Plus management liability product; Cowbell operates the platform, Zurich underwrites the module. Zurich's own page lists 'Crime Insurance' as one of the four modules a buyer can combine. ^3,⁴Company-reported. Management liability page intro and module list; Zurich page module-name section.