Beazley vs USI Insurance Services Professional Liability (E&O) Insurance

USI's flagship program is built for CPA firms, a profession Beazley's bundled MediaTech definition narrows away.

What Is Beazley?

Beazley is a specialty insurance group whose MediaTech product combines technology and professional E&O, media and cyber coverage. Separate offerings address executive liability, digital health and other specialty risks. 1,2,3,4

Read the Beazley 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. 7,8,9

Read the USI Insurance Services profile

What Is Professional Errors and Omissions (E&O) Insurance?

Professional errors and omissions (E&O) insurance, also called professional liability insurance, addresses claims that professional services or advice caused a client financial loss. What's covered depends on the services actually scheduled in the policy, not the product label alone. 13,14,15,16

Read the full coverage guide

Key Differences in Professional Liability (E&O) Insurance

CPA Firms Sit on Different Sides of Each Provider

USI's core professional-liability offering, the AICPA Professional Liability Program, is built specifically for CPA firms and sole practitioners. 10 Beazley's MediaTech form applies a Professional Services definition that narrows which professions its trigger reaches:

The sample form's definition of Professional Services excludes services performed as an accountant, architect, surveyor, health care provider, lawyer, insurance or real estate agent or broker, or civil or structural engineer, so those licensed professions are not covered by this professional E&O trigger. 6Company-reported. Sample policy form F00731, 022019 edition, Professional Services definition; a business in one of these excluded professions would need different coverage even if it buys MediaTech.

A CPA firm would find a program purpose-built for it at USI and a narrower Beazley definition covering the same profession.

A Named Program Carrier Against a Bundled Direct Form

USI is the endorsed producer, not the underwriter, of the AICPA program, which it says is underwritten by CNA. Its Business Services page separately describes brokering E&O for other business types but does not name an insurer there. 10 12 Beazley bundles professional E&O directly inside MediaTech, alongside technology E&O, media liability and cyber, and names Beazley Insurance Company, Inc. on its own application. 1 5

What Comes With the Policy

USI says AICPA program enrollees get supportive claims handling and exclusive risk-management resources, including engagement-letter templates. 10 Beazley says its cyber and tech claims team has handled thousands of E&O claims, describing coverage of implementation errors alongside software failures and IP disputes. 1

What to Confirm in Professional Liability (E&O) Insurance Quotes

  • Ask USI whether your firm qualifies for the CNA-underwritten AICPA program or would instead be placed through its Business Services practice with a different, unnamed insurer. 10 12
  • Confirm whether your profession is inside or outside Beazley's MediaTech Professional Services definition. 6
  • Get published limits and retentions from both; neither reviewed page discloses them. 10 6
  • Ask USI what the engagement-letter and risk-management resources actually include beyond the coverage itself. 10

Offering Details

Beazley vs USI Insurance Services Professional Liability (E&O) Insurance: documented features by provider

CriteriaBeazley MediaTech for Small BusinessesAICPA Professional Liability Program (USI Affinity)
Role in This Line

Beazley sells professional errors and omissions coverage bundled inside MediaTech, a single small-business form that also includes technology E&O, media liability and cyber coverage. It is not sold as a standalone professional-liability policy for this segment. 1Company-reported. US small-business MediaTech product page; does not address any larger-account professional liability program Beazley may write separately.

For CPA firms, USI runs the AICPA Professional Liability Program through its USI Affinity division as the endorsed producer, rather than underwriting the policy itself. USI's general Business Services practice separately brokers errors and omissions/professional liability coverage for other business types. 10,12Company-reported. AICPA program page and Business Services practice page.

Issuing Insurer

Beazley's posted Digital MediaTech Application names Beazley Insurance Company, Inc. as the insurer on its cover page. The actual issuing entity for a given policy is confirmed on the quote and declarations, not the blank application. 5Company-reported. Application form F00859, 042022 edition; not a regulator record and not evidence of the entity for every state or route.

USI's own page states that the AICPA Professional Liability Program is "underwritten by CNA," naming the carrier for that specific program. USI's general Business Services E&O placements do not name an insurer. 10Company-reported. Direct quote from the AICPA program page; CNA underwrites only this named program, not USI's other professional-liability placements.

Who It’s For

Not described in the reviewed sources.

USI markets the AICPA program to sole practitioners and regional CPA firms. It has offered CPA coverage since 1967 and has been the endorsed AICPA Program provider since 1994. 10Company-reported. Program page description.

Coverage Features

The sample MediaTech form covers a Tech & Professional Services Wrongful Act: a negligent act, error, omission, misstatement or unintentional breach of contract in rendering Professional Services, defined as services performed for others for a fee. 6Company-reported. Sample policy form F00731, 022019 edition, insuring agreements and definitions; the issued policy's wording and any endorsements control.

The sample form's definition of Professional Services excludes services performed as an accountant, architect, surveyor, health care provider, lawyer, insurance or real estate agent or broker, or civil or structural engineer, so those licensed professions are not covered by this professional E&O trigger. 6Company-reported. Sample policy form F00731, 022019 edition, Professional Services definition; a business in one of these excluded professions would need different coverage even if it buys MediaTech.

USI describes the policy as insuring a CPA and their practice against third-party claims that professional services caused financial harm, providing a defense and paying damages for covered claims arising from high-risk situations tied to new clients, changing business plans, or new laws and regulations. 10Company-reported. Program page description; actual insuring agreements, exclusions and conditions are set by the issued CNA policy form.

Limits and Retentions

Coverage is claims-made and reported: it responds only to claims first made and reported during the policy period (or a purchased Optional Extension Period), and defense costs reduce the available limit. A buyer can purchase an Optional Extension Period (a tail) for additional premium after non-renewal or cancellation. 6,5Company-reported. Sample policy form F00731; application form repeats the same notice; specific tail pricing and duration are set in the declarations, not disclosed publicly.

Unless the declarations list a separate amount, each insuring agreement in the sample form (including the professional-liability trigger) shares the same Policy Aggregate Limit of Liability with the policy's media and cyber coverages rather than carrying its own dedicated limit. 6Company-reported. Sample policy form F00731, 022019 edition, Limit of Liability and Coverage section; actual sublimits depend on what is purchased and shown on the declarations.

The AICPA program page does not publish limit, retention or premium figures; it says coverage plans allow a firm to tailor coverage to its risk profile. 10Not publicly disclosed. Page as read on 2026-09-23.

Risk Services

Not described in the reviewed sources.

USI says firms enrolled in the program get supportive claims handling and exclusive access to risk-management resources, including engagement-letter templates, in addition to the coverage itself. 10Company-reported. Program page description.

How to Apply

Beazley's MediaTech application asks applicants to describe the professional and technology services they perform, disclose employee count and multi-year US and non-US revenue, and state whether written client contracts include scope-of-work, damages-cap and consequential-damages-disclaimer provisions. 5Company-reported. Application form F00859, 042022 edition, General Information, Revenue Information and Contractual Controls sections; a completed application does not establish acceptance.

USI directs CPA firms seeking a quote or renewal to contact USI Affinity, with a dedicated Affinity_APL@usi.com address for the AICPA program specifically. 10Company-reported. Contact instructions on the AICPA program page.

Claims Support

Beazley says its cyber and tech claims team, including experienced litigators, has handled thousands of E&O claims, which it describes as including implementation errors alongside software failures and IP disputes. 1Company-reported. MediaTech product page claims paragraph; outcome and volume figures are Beazley's own description and not independently verified.

Not described in the reviewed sources.

Full Comparison

More Beazley vs USI Insurance Services Comparisons

Other Professional Liability (E&O) Insurance Comparisons

Sources

Beazley

  1. MediaTech for Small Businesses. Beazley; Opening product description; What we offer: E&O (Tech and Professional), Media, Cyber coverage includes; SME placement paragraph; claims team paragraph. Accessed 2026-09-23.
  2. Execuguard (Combined EPL, D&O, and Fiduciary). Beazley; ExecuGuard product introduction: combined EPL, D&O and fiduciary coverage for private organizations; What we offer: separate or shared limits, admitted or non-admitted; How can we help. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  3. Virtual Care. Beazley; Available Coverages; Who we can help; Where is this offered. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  4. Beazley Digital Media Tech Application. Beazley; F00859, 042022 edition, Beazley Insurance Company, Inc.; page 1 claims-made-and-reported notice and General Information; page 1-2 Revenue Information. Accessed 2026-09-23.
  5. Beazley MediaTech Sample Policy. Beazley; F00731, 022019 edition; Media, Tech, Data & Network Liability insuring agreement; Definitions: Tech & Professional Services Wrongful Act, Professional Services; Limit of Liability and Coverage; Optional Extension Period. 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; Technology practice client types, seed-to-IPO range, and listed insurance placement lines including PrivaSafe. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  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. Accountants Professional Liability — USI Affinity. USI Insurance Services; Quality Professional Liability Insurance Exclusively for CPA Firms; "The AICPA Professional Liability Program, underwritten by CNA, has been offering coverage to CPAs since 1967 and has been the endorsed provider of the AICPA Program since 1994."; supportive claims handling and exclusive access to extensive risk management resources, including engagement letter templates; Email Affinity_APL@usi.com. Accessed 2026-09-23.
  5. USI Specialty Program Solutions. USI Insurance Services; USI Affinity delivers high-quality insurance and financial solutions to members of affinity organizations and targeted industry segments...for professional associations, law firms, alumni and collegiate organizations, travel groups, and insurance administrators. Accessed 2026-09-23.
  6. Business Services. USI Insurance Services; USI advises clients...and provides solutions for...Errors & Omissions/Professional Liability... Accessed 2026-09-23.

Professional Liability (E&O) Insurance Guide

  1. FAQ: Professional liability insurance. Texas Department of Insurance; What’s professional liability coverage?; What types of damages…; What’s general liability insurance?; Do I need professional liability… if I have general liability…?; Is professional liability insurance required?; Can a client require…?; What’s the difference between occurrence policies and claims-made policies. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  2. Professional liability insurance. Insurance Information Institute; Opening paragraphs (professional services/advice and E&O name); Claims not covered by general liability; What types of businesses need professional liability insurance?; What’s covered… and what’s not (claims-made versus occurrence, defense and judgments, non-financial/intentional limits, BOP/in-home exclusion). Accessed 2026-09-16.
  3. Get business insurance. U.S. Small Business Administration; Six common types of business insurance table. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  4. Professional Liability – US Direct Errors and Omissions Insurance. Hiscox Inc. specimen; About this Policy / Coverage for Claims Made Against You; I.A Insuring Agreement; I.B Defense; I.C Settlement; II.A Notice of Claims; II.C Optional Extended Reporting Period; III.A, III.K, III.M, III.R, III.S Exclusions; IV.A–B Limits and Deductible; VI.O Professional Services; VI.U Wrongful Act. 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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