Alliance Risk vs
Gallagher Fiduciary Liability Insurance
Alliance Risk reviews fiduciary forms and quotes deductibles it sees; Gallagher’s FINPRO-style practice uses proprietary models to size fiduciary limits.
What Is Alliance Risk?
Alliance Risk describes itself as an independent commercial insurance brokerage serving complex businesses, including technology startups. Its offering includes technology E&O placement and review of existing policies. 1,2
What Is Gallagher?
Gallagher is a business-insurance broker and risk-management consultancy. Its technology practice serves startups through global enterprises, alongside a separate small-business offering for IT professionals and an executive-risk practice covering D&O and transaction-related coverages. Woodruff Sawyer is now part of Gallagher. 5,6,7,8,9
What Is Fiduciary Liability Insurance?
Fiduciary liability insurance addresses covered claims alleging breaches of duties in managing employee benefit plans. 10,11
Key Differences in Fiduciary Liability Insurance
Placement Practices
Alliance Risk and Gallagher both place fiduciary liability with outside carriers rather than issue the policy, and neither reviewed page names the insurer. Alliance Risk markets to carriers that specialize in fiduciary liability. Gallagher’s Executive and Financial Risk practice places the coverage and advises on limits. 3 7
Who the Coverage Is Said to Protect
Gallagher describes fiduciary liability as protecting a corporation’s ERISA fiduciaries, fiduciary committees and personnel who design or implement 401(k) or pension plans for employees and retirees. Alliance Risk targets any employer sponsoring a 401(k), defined benefit pension or health plan, including multi-employer and union plans, nonprofits, sole proprietors and partnerships, and says even a fully outsourced TPA arrangement leaves sponsor oversight liability. 7 3
Limit Advice and Reviews
Gallagher says it has proprietary models to measure fiduciary risk and help clients select coverage limits; the page does not publish specific limit or premium figures. Alliance Risk states deductibles it sees from $5,000 to $50,000 and warns that bundled D&O, EPLI and fiduciary packages often share one aggregate. Alliance Risk offers a no-charge review of an existing fiduciary policy and a structured quote intake. Gallagher’s reviewed page does not describe that intake list. Alliance Risk lists DOL audits and penalties among typical cover; Gallagher’s description is about who is protected rather than a claim-type catalogue. 7 3 4
What to Confirm in Fiduciary Liability Insurance Quotes
- Get the issuing carrier from both brokers. 3 7
- Ask Gallagher what its proprietary models recommend for your plan assets and how that maps to quoted limits. 7
- Ask Alliance Risk whether the fiduciary limit is shared with D&O or EPLI. 4
- Compare how each placed form treats DOL investigations and excessive-fee suits. 3 7
Offering Details
Alliance Risk vs Gallagher Fiduciary Liability Insurance: documented features by provider
| Criteria | Alliance Risk Fiduciary Liability Insurance | Gallagher Fiduciary Liability Insurance |
|---|---|---|
| Role in This Line | 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. 3Company-reported. Fiduciary liability product page; Alliance Risk does not underwrite the policy itself. | Gallagher's Executive and Financial Risk practice places fiduciary liability coverage with outside carriers and advises on limits; it does not underwrite the policy. 7Company-reported. Group-level executive-and-financial-risk practice page. |
| Issuing Insurer | The reviewed fiduciary liability page does not name the insurer that would issue a policy; it says Alliance Risk markets a company's risk to carriers that specialize in fiduciary liability, so the issuing insurer depends on the placement. 3Not publicly disclosed. Fiduciary liability product page as read on 2026-09-23. | The executive-and-financial-risk page does not name the insurer that would issue a given client's fiduciary liability policy. 7Not publicly disclosed. Checked the group-level executive-and-financial-risk practice page. |
| Who It’s For | 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. 3Company-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. 4Company-reported. Management liability page's program-staging guidance, describing fiduciary liability specifically among the three bundled lines. | Gallagher targets this coverage at corporations sponsoring retirement or welfare benefit plans, since the described exposure is tied specifically to ERISA fiduciary duties. 7Company-reported. Group-level executive-and-financial-risk practice page. |
| Coverage Features | 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. 3Company-reported. Fiduciary liability product page; coverage and exclusions described in general terms, subject to the policy as issued. | Gallagher describes fiduciary liability as protecting a corporation's Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) fiduciaries, fiduciary committees and personnel who design or implement 401(k) or pension plans for employees and retirees. 7Company-reported. Group-level executive-and-financial-risk practice page; a service description, not a specific policy's insuring agreement or exclusions. |
| Limits and Retentions | Alliance Risk states standard fiduciary liability deductibles it sees range from $5,000 to $50,000, with smaller, lower-risk plans qualifying for lower deductibles and higher deductibles reducing premium at the cost of more out-of-pocket exposure in a claim. 3Company-reported. Fiduciary liability product page FAQ; illustrative range, not a quote for any particular plan. Alliance Risk says entry-level management-liability packages that bundle fiduciary liability with D&O and EPLI often share a single aggregate limit, so a large D&O or EPLI settlement earlier in the policy year can reduce what is left for a fiduciary claim; it says a specialist broker structures shared versus separate limits to manage that risk. 4Company-reported. Management liability page's discussion of bundled D&O, EPLI and fiduciary programs. | The page does not publish specific fiduciary liability limits or premium ranges beyond describing its proprietary limit-selection models. 7Not publicly disclosed. Checked the group-level executive-and-financial-risk practice page. |
| Risk Services | Alliance Risk offers a no-charge review of an existing fiduciary liability policy, identifying gaps and exclusion risks and comparing the program to market options. 3Company-reported. Fiduciary liability product page, Get Your Fiduciary Liability Risk Review section. | Gallagher says it has proprietary models to measure fiduciary risk and assist clients in selecting coverage limits. 7Company-reported. Group-level executive-and-financial-risk practice page. |
| How to Apply | 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. 3Company-reported. Fiduciary liability product page, What We Need for Your Quote section; timing is a company estimate, not a guarantee. | Not described in the reviewed sources. |
| Claims Support | The reviewed fiduciary liability page does not describe an Alliance Risk claims-handling or claims-advocacy process; it discusses what a fiduciary liability policy covers rather than how Alliance Risk itself supports a claim. 3Not found in reviewed sources. Fiduciary liability product page as read on 2026-09-23. | Not described in the reviewed sources. |
Full Comparison
More Alliance Risk vs Gallagher Comparisons
Other Fiduciary Liability Insurance Comparisons
Sources
Alliance Risk
- About Us. Alliance Risk; Our Story. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Tech E&O Insurance. Alliance Risk; Opening placement description; Get Your Tech E&O Risk Review; What We Need for Your Quote; Policy Review. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Fiduciary Liability Insurance. Alliance Risk; Fiduciary Liability Insurance: Protecting the People Who Manage Your Plan; What Does Fiduciary Liability Insurance Cover?; What Fiduciary Liability Insurance Does NOT Cover; Who Needs Fiduciary Liability Insurance?; Cost of Fiduciary Liability Insurance; Get Your Fiduciary Liability Risk Review. Accessed 2026-09-23.
- Management Liability Insurance: How D&O, EPLI, and Fiduciary Fit Together. Alliance Risk; The shared limit problem; How to structure the program as you scale. Accessed 2026-09-23.
Gallagher
- Technology Insurance. Gallagher; Introduction; Solutions and coverages for the technology industry: Technology errors and omissions including cyber, Intellectual property insurance, Product liability, Employee benefits; Data-driven insights; global network. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Insurance for Technology & IT Businesses. Gallagher Small Business; Protection for IT Professionals & Their Technology-Based Businesses; recommended coverage menu, including Surety Bond Programs; Connect With An Advisor. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Executive and Financial Risk Insurance. Gallagher; Fiduciary Liability (Pension and Welfare Liability) insurance section. Accessed 2026-09-23.
- Legal Information. Gallagher Small Business; Producer identification immediately above Quick Links. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Woodruff Sawyer Is Now Gallagher. Gallagher; Opening; Executive and Financial Risk consulting; Continued access to client portals; contact form. Accessed 2026-09-16.
Fiduciary Liability Insurance Guide
- Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2008-04: Guidance Regarding ERISA Fidelity Bonding Requirements. U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration; Q2 pp.2–3. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Fiduciary Liability Insurance. Travelers; What Is Fiduciary Liability Insurance? Accessed 2026-09-16.



