CNA vs Founder Shield: How Do They Compare for Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance?

CNA identifies four built-in umbrella features. Founder Shield’s carrier-selection FAQ describes A-rated carriers matched to industry appetite, without identifying a line-specific proposed insurer. ^4,⁷

CNA Small Business Insurance: Products, Agents and Service

CNA directs small-business buyers to independent agents and describes CNA Connect as a businessowners policy for more than 600 small-business classes. Issuer and availability vary by policy and state, so confirm both in a quote. ^1,^2,³

Read the CNA profile

Read the CNA Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance page

What Is Founder Shield Insurance?

Founder Shield is a broker for venture-backed startups: you apply online in under 15 minutes, and an advisor shops its 200+ carrier markets to build a program that changes as your products and locations change. It doesn't insure you itself, so ask which insurer carries each policy. ^5,^6,^7,^8,⁹

Read the Founder Shield profile

Read the Founder Shield 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. ^12,^13,^14,^15,¹⁶

Read the full coverage guide

Key Differences in Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance

Named Form Features Versus Carrier Selection

CNA lists key-employee replacement, crisis management, waiver of subrogation and most-favorable venue as built-in umbrella enhancements. Founder Shield’s carrier-selection FAQ describes A-rated carriers matched to industry appetite, but the cited line record does not identify a proposed umbrella insurer. Buyers can check CNA’s feature wording against the proposed form and ask Founder Shield to identify the insurer, rating basis and applicable appetite for this risk. ⁴ ⁷

Identifying the Insurer

CNA names four policy enhancements, while the Founder Shield FAQ describes a carrier screen rather than umbrella form language. These records therefore leave different quote details to verify: CNA’s endorsements and Founder Shield’s proposed insurer and policy wording. Ask each for the issued form and scheduled underlying policies before comparing terms. ⁴ ⁷

What to Confirm in Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance Quotes

Ask Founder Shield for the proposed carrier, AM Best rating basis, form, limits and scheduled underlying policies. ⁷
Ask CNA for the issuing entity, attachment terms and text of its four named enhancements. ⁴
Compare exclusions and any sublimits in the actual forms. ⁷ ⁴

CNA and Founder Shield Review Scores for 2026

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.

CNA Review Score

9.0/ 10

Review Score

1 rated source

Customer feedback on CNA is mixed and hard to compare. NerdWallet gave it 4.5 out of 5 for manufacturers, while Trustpilot shows about 1.4 out of 5 from 49 mostly self-selected reviews.^[1]^[5]

Read CNA reviews

Founder Shield Review Score

7.4/ 10

Review Score

1 rated source

Founder Shield has too little independent customer feedback for a reliable verdict. One positive Trustpilot review does not establish a service track record.^[1]^[4]

Read Founder Shield reviews

CNA vs Founder Shield Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance Compared

CNA vs Founder Shield: Umbrella and Excess Liability Insurance: documented features by provider

Criteria	CNA Commercial Umbrella and Excess Liability	Founder Shield Umbrella Insurance
Role in This Line	Confirm in your quote.	Founder Shield is a retail insurance brokerage, described on its site as “the innovation arm of The Baldwin Group,” and places Founder Shield Umbrella Insurance with third-party carriers rather than underwriting the policy itself. ¹¹Company-reported. About-us page; applies to Founder Shield's brokerage model generally, restated here for this line.
Issuing Insurer	Confirm in your quote.	Founder Shield says it places policies, including Founder Shield Umbrella Insurance, only with carriers rated A- or better by AM Best, chosen for the client's industry. It does not name the issuing insurer for this line; that depends on which carrier the policy is placed with. ⁷Company-reported. General carrier-selection FAQ, not specific to this line's placements.
Who It’s For	Confirm in your quote.	Founder Shield's page describes umbrella coverage broadly for high-net-worth individuals, business owners, property owners, and professionals such as doctors, lawyers or architects; it does not distinguish a business-only umbrella product from personal umbrella coverage. ¹⁰Company-reported. Umbrella Insurance product page; wording mixes personal and commercial umbrella use cases.
Coverage Features	CNA says its umbrella forms are designed to align with most underlying terms and conditions. ⁴Company-reported. Entity: CNA brand; issuing CNA subsidiary may vary by product/state Product: United States commercial insurance Jurisdiction: United States Research source scope: US commercial umbrella/excess Claim limitation: Company-reported; policy wording, underwriting and jurisdiction-specific availability control. CNA lists key-employee replacement, crisis management, waiver of subrogation and most-favorable venue as built-in enhancements. ⁴Company-reported. Entity: CNA brand; issuing CNA subsidiary may vary by product/state Product: United States commercial insurance Jurisdiction: United States Research source scope: US commercial umbrella/excess Claim limitation: Company-reported; policy wording, underwriting and jurisdiction-specific availability control.	Founder Shield describes umbrella insurance as extra liability coverage above the limits of underlying policies, responding to bodily injury, property damage, and personal-liability claims like libel or slander once primary limits are exhausted. ¹⁰Company-reported. Product page; the issued policy and declarations control actual coverage.
Risk Services	CNA says its commercial umbrella/excess underwriting draws on more than 50 years of experience and offers flexible underwriting. ⁴Company-reported. Entity: CNA brand; issuing CNA subsidiary may vary by product/state Product: United States commercial insurance Jurisdiction: United States Research source scope: US commercial umbrella/excess Claim limitation: Company-reported; policy wording, underwriting and jurisdiction-specific availability control.	Confirm in your quote.
How to Apply	Confirm in your quote.	You request Founder Shield Umbrella Insurance through Founder Shield's website or an insurance advisor rather than binding coverage directly; Founder Shield says its placement team then approaches carriers on the client's behalf. ^11,⁷Company-reported. About-us and carrier-selection pages describe the general placement process, not a line-specific application form.

Related Pages for CNA vs Founder Shield Umbrella and Excess Liability

Umbrella and Excess Liability Pages for CNA and Founder Shield

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Sources for CNA vs Founder Shield

Sources About CNA

Insurance for Small Businesses. CNA; Insurance for Small Businesses, lines 38-50 and 65-67 (CNA Central and agent route); lines 79-106 (product and stated appetite lists); page footer line 132 (CNA registered service mark). Accessed 2026-09-28.
CNA Connect Small Businessowners Policy (BOP) | CNA Insurance. CNA; CNA Connect; coverages, product range, services. Accessed 2026-09-28.
General Disclaimer. CNA; General Disclaimer paragraphs 1 and 5 (HTML lines 24 and 28): CNA describes Continental Casualty Company and its relevant affiliates; references to CNA may include one or more CCC affiliates; each particular policy/product/service is the responsibility only of the specific CNA company that issues or supplies it. Footer line 57 identifies CNA Financial Corporation as trademark registrant. Re-read 2026-09-29. Accessed 2026-09-29.
Umbrella Insurance and Excess Liability Insurance | CNA Insurance. CNA; Forms, enhancements, underwriting. Accessed 2026-09-28.

Sources About Founder Shield

Founder Shield. Founder Shield; Opening broker description; Specialized Practices; Smart Tech, Smarter People; quote and sign-in links. Accessed 2026-09-15.
Startup Insurance. Founder Shield; What Coverage Does your Startup Need?; Why Startups Choose Founder Shield; Industries We Serve; Essential Policies to Consider section. Accessed 2026-09-15.
How Do You Decide Which Carriers to Approach? Founder Shield; FAQ answer on carrier selection: works exclusively with A-rated (AM Best) carriers, matched by industry appetite. Accessed 2026-09-23.
What If Our Company Grows A Lot or Things Change During the Year? Founder Shield; Carl Niedbala answer, November 25, 2024: operational changes and coverage adjustments. Accessed 2026-09-15.
Terms of Service. Founder Shield; Opening agreement; License Status; Representations and Disclaimers Related to Products or Services; Fees and Charges; Void Where Prohibited. Accessed 2026-09-15.
Umbrella Insurance. Founder Shield; What Is Umbrella Insurance?; Who Needs Umbrella Insurance Coverage?; What Does Umbrella Insurance Cover? Accessed 2026-09-23.
About Us. Founder Shield; “Founder Shield is the innovation arm of The Baldwin Group”; company history and mission. Accessed 2026-09-23.

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.