Alliance Risk vs USI Insurance Services D&O Insurance

Alliance Risk posts Side A bands and a free review; USI places D&O including its ExecuSafe endorsement package for SMBs.

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

Read the Alliance Risk profile

What Is USI Insurance Services?

USI Insurance Services is a U.S. insurance brokerage and consulting firm that arranges property and casualty, employee benefits, personal risk, and retirement programs. Its Technology practice says it works with software, hardware, and related companies from early seed stage through IPO, using a consultative process rather than a published self-serve quote. 5,6,7

Read the USI Insurance Services profile

What Is Directors and Officers Insurance?

Directors and officers liability insurance addresses covered claims alleging wrongful acts in managing an organization. 10

Read the full coverage guide

Key Differences in D&O Insurance

Review Service Versus a Named Endorsement Package

Alliance Risk and USI both broker D&O. Alliance Risk reviews an existing program for Side A/B/C gaps and missing endorsements, then markets the risk to management-liability specialists. 3 USI says it helps clients identify D&O exposures, review existing management-liability policies for gaps, and place coverage, including through ExecuSafe, an endorsement package it applies to policies placed with the market. 8 Neither reviewed set of pages names the issuing insurer. 3 8

Who the Pages Target

USI targets small- and medium-sized businesses for ExecuSafe, saying many skip D&O or buy insufficient limits; its Technology practice separately works D&O for technology clients and cites a benchmarking case study on a software company’s limit. 8 6 Alliance Risk lists venture-backed and public companies, fintech, healthcare, real estate and financial services, M&A and IPO situations, nonprofits, and small private companies without outside investors. 3

Published Figures and How You Inquire

Alliance Risk publishes indicative Side A limits and premium bands. 3 USI cites a 2016 Chubb survey on private-company D&O take-up and an average claim cost of $450,000, but does not publish USI’s own placed limits. 8 USI directs ExecuSafe prospects to a published Select Business email address, with Technology and Business Services inquiries going to a separate published email or a local office. 8 9 Alliance Risk collects a structured quote file instead of a published email route. 3

What to Confirm in D&O Insurance Quotes

  • Ask USI whether ExecuSafe endorsements would attach to the proposed form. 8
  • Ask Alliance Risk for its no-charge Side A/B/C review of that same form. 3
  • If you are a technology company, ask USI how its Technology-practice benchmarking would change the limit. 6
  • Get the issuing insurer from both. 3 8

Offering Details

Alliance Risk vs USI Insurance Services D&O Insurance: documented features by provider

CriteriaAlliance Risk Directors & Officers (D&O) InsuranceUSI ExecuSafe Directors & Officers Liability Program
Role in This Line

Alliance Risk places D&O insurance as a broker: it reviews a company's existing D&O program and markets the risk to carriers that specialize in management liability. 3Company-reported. D&O product page; Alliance Risk does not underwrite the policy itself.

USI is a broker for D&O coverage. It says it helps clients identify D&O exposures, review any existing management liability policies for gaps, and place coverage, including through its own named endorsement package, ExecuSafe. 8Company-reported. ExecuSafe article's "How USI Can Help" section.

Issuing Insurer

The reviewed D&O 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 management liability, so the issuing insurer depends on the placement. 3Not publicly disclosed. D&O product page as read on 2026-09-23.

USI does not name the insurer that underwrites ExecuSafe or other D&O placements on the pages reviewed; it describes ExecuSafe as an endorsement package it applies to policies placed with the market. 8Not publicly disclosed. ExecuSafe article and Technology/Business Services practice pages as read on 2026-09-23.

Who It’s For

Alliance Risk says D&O is relevant to venture-backed and public companies, high-risk industries such as fintech, healthcare, real estate and financial services, companies going through M&A, IPO or leadership changes, nonprofits, and small private companies without outside investors. 3Company-reported. D&O product page; eligibility for a particular company depends on underwriting.

Alliance Risk says a company should turn on D&O coverage at its first priced funding round, because institutional investment brings personal exposure for directors and officers from day one. 4Company-reported. Management liability page's program-staging guidance, describing D&O specifically among the three bundled lines.

USI targets small- and medium-sized businesses for ExecuSafe, saying many either skip D&O coverage or buy insufficient limits because their brokers do not help them identify the exposure. Its Technology practice separately places D&O for software, hardware and communications clients from seed stage through IPO. 8,6Company-reported. ExecuSafe article eligibility framing and Technology practice client description.

Coverage Features

Alliance Risk describes D&O policies it places as having three parts: Side A for individual directors and officers when the company cannot indemnify them, Side B reimbursing the company for indemnification costs, and Side C covering the company directly for certain liabilities. 3Company-reported. D&O product page; actual policy structure and whether sides are combined or separately limited depend on the carrier and the policy as issued.

Alliance Risk lists standard D&O exclusions it sees, including fraud and intentional misconduct, criminal acts, bodily injury and property damage, and often prior acts before the policy started; it says employment practices and ERISA benefit-plan claims are typically excluded and need separate EPLI or fiduciary liability coverage. 3Company-reported. D&O product page; exclusion wording varies by carrier and the policy as issued.

USI says D&O insurance is meant to protect a company's leadership from personal loss in a lawsuit, since the corporate veil does not shield directors and officers from personal liability for the business's actions and debts. It lists breach of contract, breach of duty, misrepresentation, unfair competition, misappropriation of trade secrets, securities lawsuits and creditor lawsuits as common claim types the coverage responds to. 8Company-reported. ExecuSafe article's description of D&O purpose and claim types; actual insuring agreements and exclusions are set by the issued policy.

Limits and Retentions

Alliance Risk publishes indicative Side A limit and premium ranges: mid-size companies ($5M-$50M revenue) typically carry $2M-$5M in Side A limits, and larger private companies $5M-$25M or more. It shows overall D&O premium bands from $2,500-$10,000 for small private companies up to $50,000-$500,000 for large private companies, noting fintech, crypto and venture-backed companies often pay 2-3x more. 3Company-reported. D&O product page; illustrative bands, not a quote for any particular company.

Alliance Risk says entry-level management-liability packages that bundle D&O with EPLI and fiduciary often share a single aggregate limit, so a large EPLI or fiduciary settlement earlier in the policy year can reduce what is left for a later D&O 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.

USI cites a 2016 Chubb survey that found 43% of private companies carry no D&O coverage, with an average private-company D&O claim cost of $450,000, but the article does not publish USI's own placed limits, retentions or premium ranges for ExecuSafe. 8Not publicly disclosed. Third-party statistic cited by USI to illustrate exposure, not USI's own placement data.

Risk Services

Alliance Risk offers a no-charge review of an existing D&O policy, identifying gaps in the Side A/B/C structure and missing endorsements and comparing the program to market options. 3Company-reported. D&O product page, Get Your D&O Risk Review section.

USI's Technology practice cites a case study where its benchmarking analysis showed a software company was buying more D&O limit than peers with similar risk profiles, and says the resulting change saved the client more than $100,000 per year in D&O premium. 6Company-reported. Single case study on the Technology practice page; company-reported outcome, not independently verified.

How to Apply

For a D&O quote, Alliance Risk asks for company revenue, industry and stage, board composition, investor structure, current D&O coverage and carrier, five-year claims history and upcoming events such as M&A or an IPO, and says it typically delivers proposals within a few business days. 3Company-reported. D&O product page, What We Need for Your Quote section; timing is a company estimate, not a guarantee.

USI directs small- and medium-sized businesses interested in ExecuSafe to email Select.Business@usi.com; its Technology and Business Services practices separately route inquiries to pcinquiries@usi.com or a local USI office. 8,6,9Company-reported. Contact instructions on the ExecuSafe article and the Technology and Business Services pages.

Claims Support

The reviewed D&O page does not describe an Alliance Risk claims-handling or claims-advocacy process; it discusses what a D&O policy covers rather than how Alliance Risk itself supports a claim. 3Not found in reviewed sources. D&O product page as read on 2026-09-23.

Not described in the reviewed sources.

Full Comparison

More Alliance Risk vs USI Insurance Services Comparisons

Other D&O Insurance Comparisons

Sources

Alliance Risk

  1. About Us. Alliance Risk; Our Story. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  2. 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.
  3. Directors & Officers Insurance (D&O). Alliance Risk; D&O Insurance: Protecting Directors and Officers From Personal Liability; The Three Sides of D&O Coverage; What D&O Insurance Does NOT Cover; Who Needs D&O Insurance?; D&O Insurance Cost: What to Expect; How to Buy D&O Insurance; Get Your D&O Risk Review. Accessed 2026-09-23.
  4. 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.

USI Insurance Services

  1. The Power of ONE. USI Insurance Services; History, client-count, nationwide office, and P&C / benefits / personal risk / retirement description. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  2. Technology Insurance. USI Insurance Services; USI's Technology Practice provides risk management advisory and insurance placement for: ...Directors & Officers Liability...; CASE STUDY: USI Benchmarking Saves Software Company $100,000 in D&O Premiums. Accessed 2026-09-23.
  3. Commissions and Fees. USI Insurance Services; Licensed-producer authority, insurer-paid commission default, contingent compensation, and client request right. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  4. Protect Your Company and Personal Assets From Management Liability Risks. USI Insurance Services; JULY 5, 2023 article; common D&O claim types (Breach of Contract, Breach of Duty, Misrepresentation, Unfair Competition, Misappropriation of Trade Secrets, Securities Lawsuits, Creditor Lawsuits); Creditor Suit and Competitor Disputes scenarios; How USI Can Help; ExecuSafe endorsement packs. Accessed 2026-09-23.
  5. Business Services. USI Insurance Services; USI advises clients...and provides solutions for...Directors & Officers Liability... Accessed 2026-09-23.

D&O Insurance Guide

  1. Glossary of Business Insurance Terms. The Hartford; Directors and Officers Liability Insurance; Errors and Omissions Insurance; Employment Practices Liability Insurance. Accessed 2026-09-16.

Updated . Spot, a product of Tools for Enlightenment, publishes this research and works in the commercial insurance market. The comparison applies the same criteria to both providers. Editorial policy. To suggest a correction, contact Spot with the page URL and supporting source.

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