What Is Beazley?
Beazley’s MediaTech combines technology E&O, media and cyber, while Execuguard offers separate or shared executive-risk limits; small businesses seeking a quick standard quote should compare digital carriers. 1,2,3,4
Markel Insurance: Specialty Business and Products
Markel Insurance is Markel Group's specialty and small-business insurance business, with offerings across packages, workers' compensation, cyber, professional and management liability, property, marine, and surety. Products use different insurers and distribution routes, so compare the issuer and terms shown on the specific quote. 6,7
What Is Directors and Officers Insurance?
D&O insurance can help pay covered defense costs and losses from claims against company leaders over management decisions. If your organization has a board or executives, check whether the company itself is insured and whether legal bills reduce the limit. 9,10,11
Key Differences in D&O Insurance
Defense Structure and Side A
Beazley says its private-company D&O policy lets the policyholder choose duty-to-defend or pay-on-behalf handling, pays covered defense costs, and offers an additional Excess Side A limit for individual leaders. Markel’s page also lists duty-to-defend or indemnification forms and optional additional Side A defense limits; these labels do not establish identical coverage. Ask for actual forms; a feature missing from a page is not proof it is unavailable in a quote. 5 5 8
Standalone or Blended Programs
Beazley describes standalone D&O and ExecuGuard with employment-practices and fiduciary coverage; Markel lists D&O as standalone or blended in private-company and nonprofit management liability. Neither label tells buyers whether aggregates are shared. Compare declarations and endorsements, including how another line’s claim affects remaining limits. 5 3 8
Published Capacity and Buyer Fit
Beazley advertises private-company limits up to $20 million, subject to underwriting; Markel’s cited page names customer types but does not state a D&O limit. Beazley targets private companies without a stated employee or revenue threshold, while Markel names portfolio companies, PEOs, hospitality, energy, healthcare, education and associations. A maximum is not a quote, and a segment list does not determine eligibility. 5 5 8
What to Confirm in D&O Insurance Quotes
- Which defense structure is offered, who selects counsel, and is additional Side A protection included? 5 5 8
- Are D&O, employment-practices and fiduciary limits separate or shared, and which insurer issues the policy? 3 8
- What limit, retention, insured entity and eligibility terms can each underwriter offer? 5 8
Review Scores
These averages can combine ratings for different products, locations, and customer groups, including approximate BBB grade conversions. Read each review for the sources, scope, and calculation.
Beazley
Review Score
1 rated source
Beazley’s available customer feedback is mixed, with a 2.8/5 WalletHub rating from 15 reviews. That small, mixed-product sample gives business buyers limited guidance.[3][9]
Read Beazley reviewsMarkel Insurance
Review Score
2 rated sources
There is little public customer feedback on Markel. Trustpilot shows 2.5 out of 5 from just 5 reviews, and BBB lists 12 complaints closed in the last three years.[4][3]
Read Markel Insurance reviewsOffering Details
Beazley vs Markel Insurance D&O Insurance: documented features by provider
| Criteria | Beazley D&O – Private Companies | Markel private and nonprofit D&O |
|---|---|---|
| Role in This Line | Beazley underwrites private-company directors and officers (D&O) liability itself, offered as a standalone product on its D&O - Private Companies page and bundled with employment practices and fiduciary liability coverage in its ExecuGuard package policy. 5,3Company-reported. US private-company D&O as described on the two reviewed product pages; does not establish which entity issues a particular policy. | Markel lists directors-and-officers liability within private-company and nonprofit management-liability offerings, as standalone or blended coverage. 8Company-reported. U.S. private/nonprofit product page; exact coverage structure varies by policy. |
| Issuing Insurer | Neither the D&O - Private Companies page nor the ExecuGuard page names the specific Beazley insurance entity that issues the policy; ExecuGuard states both admitted and non-admitted versions are available, so the issuing carrier depends on the policy placed. 5,3Not found in reviewed sources. Both product pages as read on 2026-09-23; the issued policy's declarations control the actual insurer. | Confirm in your quote. |
| Who It’s For | The D&O page targets privately held companies of all sizes facing litigation such as employment allegations, fraud and misrepresentation claims, without a stated employee-count or revenue threshold on that page. 5,3Company-reported. Private-company D&O only; ExecuGuard buyers can additionally choose to share limits across D&O, EPL and fiduciary coverages. | The page names private equity/portfolio companies, PEOs, hospitality, energy and healthcare among private-sector customer types, plus healthcare, education and associations among nonprofits. 8Company-reported. Examples are not an exhaustive appetite or eligibility list. |
| Coverage Features | The D&O product lets the policyholder choose between a "duty to defend" or "pay on behalf" claim-handling structure, and Beazley says it pays 100% of defense costs for covered loss. 5Company-reported. D&O - Private Companies product page; actual defense obligations and cost-sharing are set by the issued policy. Beazley offers a dedicated additional Excess Side A limit for individual directors and officers, plus an optional employed-lawyers errors-and-omissions extension. 5Company-reported. D&O - Private Companies product page; availability and pricing of the extension depend on underwriting. | The page describes D&O protection for organizational leaders against covered claims such as mismanagement, breach of duty or regulatory violations, with defense costs, settlements and judgments subject to policy terms. 8Company-reported. Illustrative marketing description; not policy wording. |
| Limits and Retentions | Beazley advertises private-company D&O limits up to US $20 million, on either an admitted or non-admitted (surplus lines) basis; actual limits and retentions are set by underwriting and appear on the declarations. 5,3Company-reported. Advertised maximum capacity, not a guaranteed quote amount. | Confirm in your quote. |
| Risk Services | D&O policyholders get pre-approved choice-of-counsel flexibility, and law-firm insureds can access a bespoke executive-risk wording through Beazley's related Practice Protect product. 5Company-reported. D&O - Private Companies product page; scope and terms of the Practice Protect wording were not independently reviewed. | Confirm in your quote. |
| How to Apply | Beazley lists a downloadable EPL renewal application as a tool on the D&O page and names regional Executive Risk underwriters and brokers as contacts, but the reviewed page does not describe a self-service online quoting flow for new D&O business. 5Company-reported. D&O - Private Companies product page as read on 2026-09-23; buyers typically work through a broker or underwriter contact. | Confirm in your quote. |
| Claims Support | Beazley illustrates its D&O claims approach with a securities class-action and shareholder derivative-action scenario in which its claims team worked with the insured's defense counsel toward a dismissal, avoiding a settlement; this is a single company-reported example, not audited claims-outcome data. 3Company-reported. ExecuGuard page scenario section; outcome statistics are not independently verified. | Confirm in your quote. |
Full Comparison
More Beazley vs Markel Insurance Comparisons
Other D&O Insurance Comparisons
Sources
Beazley
- MediaTech for Small Businesses. Beazley; Opening product description; What we offer: E&O (Tech and Professional), Media, Cyber coverage includes; How can we help; SME placement paragraph; Tools & Resources. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Legal Information. Beazley; Website conditions: US jurisdiction availability, surplus lines and policy wording disclaimers; Beazley plc identity. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Execuguard (Combined EPL, D&O, and Fiduciary). Beazley; What we offer: separate or shared limits among EPL, D&O and fiduciary; Limits up to US $20,000,000, both admitted and non-admitted available; Examples or Scenarios: California securities class action/derivative action. Accessed 2026-09-23.
- Virtual Care. Beazley; Available Coverages; Who we can help; Where is this offered. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- D&O - Private Companies. Beazley; What we offer; How can we help: duty to defend/pay on behalf, 100% defense for covered loss, Excess Side A limit, private placement coverage, Practice Protect for lawyers; Up to US $20,000,000; Tools & Resources: EPL_RenewalApp. Accessed 2026-09-23.
Markel Insurance
- About us. Markel; Markel at a glance; description of Markel Insurance within Markel Group Inc. Accessed 2026-09-28.
- Markel Group Inc. 2025 Form 10-K. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission; filed by Markel Group Inc.; Cover page; Part I, Item 1 Business—Markel Insurance, U.S. Wholesale and Specialty, Programs and Solutions; Part II, Item 7/8 for group and segment risks. Accessed 2026-09-28.
- Private and Nonprofit Management Liability Insurance. Markel; What we offer; private/nonprofit segment; D&O, EPL, fiduciary and optional coverage sections. Accessed 2026-09-29.
D&O Insurance Guide
- Glossary of Business Insurance Terms. The Hartford; Directors and Officers Liability Insurance; Errors and Omissions Insurance; Employment Practices Liability Insurance. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- The Chubb Primary Directors & Officers and Entity Securities Liability Insurance. Chubb Group of Insurance Companies; hosted by eperils; I.A–C p.1; I.C p.1; I and III.A–B pp.1–2; VI Reporting pp.3–4. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Private Company Directors and Officers Liability Coverage. Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America; I.A–C p.1; I.C p.1; Header p.1 and VI.A pp.6–7. Accessed 2026-09-16.
