Alliance Risk vs Founder Shield: How Do They Compare for Fiduciary Liability Insurance?

Alliance Risk targets fiduciary liability coverage at any employer sponsoring a 401(k), defined benefit pension or health plan, including multi-employer and union plans, nonprofits, sole proprietors and partnerships with plans, and professional groups managing partner retirement plans; it says even plans fully outsourced to a TPA still need fiduciary coverage because the sponsor retains oversight liability. ¹Company-reported. Fiduciary liability product page; eligibility for a particular company depends on underwriting.

Alliance Risk says a company should add fiduciary liability coverage when it launches a 401(k) or similar benefit plan, because ERISA fiduciary duty attaches the moment the plan goes live. ²Company-reported. Management liability page's program-staging guidance, describing fiduciary liability specifically among the three bundled lines.

Founder Shield markets fiduciary liability to plan sponsors offering a 401(k) or similar plan and to the individual fiduciaries who handle plan funds or property. ³Company-reported. Fiduciary Liability product page.

For a fiduciary liability quote, Alliance Risk asks for the plan type, number of participants, total assets under management, current coverage and limits, whether an ERISA fidelity bond is in place, and a five-year claims history of DOL audits and participant complaints, and says it typically delivers proposals within a few business days. ¹Company-reported. Fiduciary liability product page, What We Need for Your Quote section; timing is a company estimate, not a guarantee.

You request Founder Shield Fiduciary Liability Insurance through Founder Shield's website or an insurance advisor rather than binding coverage directly; Founder Shield says its placement team then approaches carriers on the client's behalf. ^4,5Company-reported. About-us and carrier-selection pages describe the general placement process, not a line-specific application form.

Alliance Risk lists legal defense costs, settlements and judgments, and Department of Labor audits and penalties as typically covered, responding to claims such as excessive-fee litigation and imprudent investment selection; it says criminal and fraudulent acts, bodily injury and property damage, and employee dishonesty (covered instead by an ERISA fidelity bond) are excluded. ¹Company-reported. Fiduciary liability product page; coverage and exclusions described in general terms, subject to the policy as issued.

Founder Shield lists claims of risky plan investments, poor investment advice, administrative errors in benefits processing, and improper denial or change of benefits as scenarios fiduciary liability responds to. ³Company-reported. Product page; the issued policy and declarations control actual coverage.

Founder Shield distinguishes fiduciary liability from D&O and general liability: it responds to breach-of-fiduciary-duty claims tied to ERISA plan administration, not general management or bodily-injury claims. ³Company-reported. Fiduciary Liability product page.

Alliance Risk places fiduciary liability coverage as a broker: it reviews a company's current coverage and markets the risk to carriers that specialize in fiduciary liability. ¹Company-reported. Fiduciary liability product page; Alliance Risk does not underwrite the policy itself.

Founder Shield is a retail insurance brokerage, described on its site as “the innovation arm of The Baldwin Group,” and places Founder Shield Fiduciary Liability Insurance with third-party carriers rather than underwriting the policy itself. ⁴Company-reported. About-us page; applies to Founder Shield's brokerage model generally, restated here for this line.