Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance vs Nationwide: How Do They Compare for Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance?

For selected U.S. casualty risks in the appetite guide, Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance lists lead umbrella, follow-form excess, and retained-limit forms. Nationwide describes an added liability layer above general liability or business auto, with quote terms depending on the business and underlying coverage; actual terms depend on the issued policy and jurisdiction. ^5,¹⁰

What Is Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance?

BHSI provides commercial and specialty insurance in the U.S., with product-specific industry lists that include healthcare, energy and technology. Online quote and application submissions are nonbinding. ^1,^2,^3,⁴

Read the Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance profile

Read the Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance page

What Is Nationwide?

Nationwide’s commercial catalogue includes common small-business policies and separate specialty products. A catalogue listing does not establish eligibility or policy terms; confirm the issuing company and coverage for your state and business. ^7,^8,⁹

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Read the Nationwide Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance page

What Is Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance?

Umbrella or excess insurance adds liability limits above the policies named in the quote after a covered claim exhausts their limits. It may fit if a contract sets higher limits; check which primary policies are listed and any gaps between them. ^11,^12,^13,^14,¹⁵

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What Are the Key Differences Between Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance and Nationwide Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance?

Layer Design

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance’s U.S. appetite guide names lead umbrella, follow-form excess, and retained-limit structures. Nationwide describes umbrella excess as an added liability layer above underlying policies such as general liability or business auto, with the quote depending on the business and underlying coverage; actual terms follow the issued policy and jurisdiction. Both describe how an umbrella/excess layer sits in a liability program: Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance names forms, while Nationwide describes the additional-layer function and examples of underlying policies. ⁵ ¹⁰

Account-Fit Screen

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance lists manufacturers, construction, trucking, real estate, and energy among U.S. umbrella/excess target classes, subject to restrictions and underwriting. Nationwide describes its marketed umbrella excess for businesses with underlying liability coverage and says quotes depend on the business and underlying coverage. Both address fit for a business seeking excess liability, through BHSI’s industry appetite and Nationwide’s underlying-coverage/quote screen; neither guarantees eligibility. ⁶ ¹⁰

What Should You Confirm in Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance and Nationwide Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance Quotes?

Ask which form and underlying liability policies would appear in the proposal. ⁵ ¹⁰
Ask whether the operation and existing underlying coverage fit the stated appetite and quote screen. ⁶ ¹⁰

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance and Nationwide 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.

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Review Score

-/ 10

Review Score

No reviews found

The public ratings for Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance are low but thin: Trustpilot shows 2.1 out of 5 from 9 reviews and BBB shows 1 out of 5 from 6. Both mix travel and commercial customers, so we don't count them in a score.^[5]^[7]

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Nationwide Review Score

7.8/ 10

Review Score

4 rated sources

Experts like Nationwide more than customers do. NerdWallet gives it 4.5 out of 5 for business insurance, while small-business customers on ConsumerAffairs give it 2.5 out of 5 from 19 reviews.^[1]^[10]

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Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance vs Nationwide Umbrella and Excess Liability Compared

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance vs Nationwide: Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance: documented features by provider

Criteria	Lead umbrella and excess casualty	Nationwide umbrella excess (official overview)
Role in This Line	Confirm in your quote.	Nationwide describes offering umbrella excess for the audience stated on the cited product page. ¹⁰Company-reported. umbrella excess marketed by nationwide; scope is limited to the cited official product overview and described audience. This is not a policy form or a universal eligibility statement.
Who It’s For	BHSI lists manufacturers/distributors, real estate, grocery, financial institutions, construction, energy and trucking as umbrella/excess targets. ⁶Company-reported. BHSI US lead umbrella/excess casualty targets. Material limitation: Targets remain subject to restrictions and underwriting appetite.	Businesses with underlying liability coverage; Nationwide requests business, policy, loss, and payroll information for a quote. ¹⁰Company-reported. umbrella excess marketed by nationwide; scope is limited to the cited official product overview and described audience. This is not a policy form or a universal eligibility statement.
Coverage Features	BHSI markets lead umbrella and excess casualty as an explicit product line and lists pollution/contractor-form features. ⁶Company-reported. US commercial casualty placements. Material limitation: Marketing overview; the manuscript and broker-specific forms require underwriting.	The cited product page describes an added liability layer above underlying policies such as general liability or business auto; the page says terms and quote depend on the insured's business and underlying coverage. Marketing description only; actual coverage, exclusions, conditions, limits, and availability depend on the issued policy and jurisdiction. ¹⁰Company-reported. umbrella excess marketed by nationwide; scope is limited to the cited official product overview and described audience. This is not a policy form or a universal eligibility statement.
Limits and Retentions	The appetite guide lists lead umbrella, follow-form excess and retained-limit forms, with $10 million excess capacity and more for selected risks. ⁵Company-reported. Select risks in the guide’s US casualty appetite. Material limitation: Capacity is not a quote or universally available layer; “more” is risk-selective.	The cited overview does not set a universal limit or retention for this line. Ask for the proposed policy form, limits, retentions, exclusions, and conditions in the quote. ¹⁰Not publicly disclosed. Only the cited marketing page was reviewed for published limit and retention information; no policy-form entitlement is inferred.
How to Apply	Confirm in your quote.	The page directs prospective customers to contact an agent or request a quote. The page does not establish a quote, bind, or coverage-effective timeline. ¹⁰Company-reported. umbrella excess marketed by nationwide; scope is limited to the cited official product overview and described audience. This is not a policy form or a universal eligibility statement.

Related Pages for Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance vs Nationwide

Umbrella and Excess Liability Pages for Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance and Nationwide

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Sources for Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance vs Nationwide

Sources About Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance

At A Glance. Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance; United States section, zero-based PDF pages 49–53 (viewer pages 50–54): product/industry lists on pages 49–50; U.S. disclosure/version footer on page 53 is 2026-8-03 A. The 2026-09-14 A footer is on preceding European page 48, not the U.S. section. Accessed 2026-09-29.
About Us. Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance; About BHSI; company profile page re-opened through official site on 2026-09-28; company says it is part of National Indemnity group. Accessed 2026-09-28.
Terms of Service. Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance; Important Information Concerning Use of this Web Site, paragraphs 2–4; nonbinding submissions, contracted-agent authority, state variation, product availability and policy-specific terms. Accessed 2026-09-28.
Public Disclosure — Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Singapore Branch. Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance; Singapore branch public disclosure, Company Profile ¶¶ 1–2; direct page opened 2026-09-28. ¶ 1 identifies BHSIC as a Nebraska-domiciled direct P&C insurer; ¶ 2 states BHSIC is wholly owned by National Indemnity Company, itself wholly owned by Berkshire Hathaway Incorporated. Accessed 2026-09-28.
Casualty Appetite Guide - U.S. Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance; Casualty appetite PDF page 1: $50K minimum premium, GL/products/lead umbrella/excess lines, selected $10M excess capacity, placement forms and target/avoided classes; guide dated 2026-07-15. Accessed 2026-09-28.
Casualty. Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance; US casualty product lines and features: Primary General Liability lines 10-34; Primary Products/Completed Operations Liability 35-44; Lead Umbrella and Excess Casualty 46-63. Accessed 2026-09-28.

Sources About Nationwide

Small Business Insurance. Nationwide; Small business products and solutions, lines 185–214: BOP, workers’ compensation, commercial auto, umbrella, EPLI, cyber and surety; purchase guidance lines 235–247. Accessed 2026-09-29.
Small Business Insurance Solutions for Agents. Nationwide; Specialized small commercial solutions: BOP, auto, workers’ compensation, cyber, EPLI, umbrella, inland marine and professional liability; page states appetite varies by state, lines 129–163, 191–193. Accessed 2026-09-29.
Terms and Conditions for Nationwide.com. Nationwide; P&C products not offered by all companies/states; policy/declarations control; NMI and affiliates may underwrite; each underwriter responsible for own products, lines 358–368 and 391–394. Accessed 2026-09-29.
Commercial Umbrella Liability Insurance from Nationwide. Nationwide; How commercial umbrella works; underlying policies and additional-liability layer. Accessed 2026-09-30.

Sources for the Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance Guide

Liability Insurance. Insurance Information Institute; Heading Umbrella Liability Insurance; sentence Umbrella Liability—also known as Excess Liability Insurance; underlying policies listed with limits; typically GL, auto and employers’ liability; starts when a covered loss exhausts the primary per occurrence limit; Most umbrella policies exclude EPL, professional liability, product recall, workers compensation, asbestos, pollution, war and terrorism. Accessed 2026-09-16.
Commercial Insurance Guide. California Department of Insurance; Commercial Umbrella; excess over a basic liability policy; auto/CGL/WC or any liability policy can be covered; may respond if basic policy not in force or for gaps; SIR when no underlying. Accessed 2026-09-16.
Lines of Insurance. California Department of Insurance; Umbrella or Excess Liability Policy: excess limits over existing liability; may provide additional coverages not provided by underlying policies. Accessed 2026-09-16.
Coverage Hub. Coverdash; Excess & Specialty: Umbrella; Excess Liability. Accessed 2026-09-16.
Products. Kinro; 09 Umbrella/Excess: additional limits above scheduled underlying policies; when to review; reviewed with. Accessed 2026-09-16.