Counterpart vs Founder Shield: How Do They Compare for Employment Practices Liability Insurance?

Counterpart describes employment-related allegations and illustrative terms. Founder Shield names startup and industry audiences and places EPL through its brokerage team. 3,10

What Is Counterpart Insurance?

Counterpart describes a broker-focused platform for small businesses and lists management and professional liability programs. Buyers should compare the named profession, carrier, state, policy wording and any package component on the actual quote. 1,2

Read the Counterpart profile

Read the Counterpart Employment Practices 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 Employment Practices Liability Insurance page

What Is Employment Practices Liability Insurance?

EPLI can help pay covered defense costs and losses when applicants or workers allege discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination or other workplace wrongdoing. If you employ people, check the claim definition, defense costs and prior acts. 12,13,14

Read the full coverage guide

Key Differences in Employment Practices Liability Insurance

Advisory Services

Founder Shield targets startups hiring their first employees, retail and hospitality businesses, professional services, technology companies, and nonprofits with volunteers. Counterpart publishes a dedicated EPL page without a specific segment list in its reviewed claims. If your workforce falls into one of Founder Shield’s named groups, ask what underwriting details shape eligibility and compare Counterpart’s appetite for the same operations. 3 10

Workforce Modeling

Founder Shield says buyers request coverage through its site or an advisor, after which its placement team approaches carriers; it does not bind coverage directly. Counterpart describes distribution through a wholesale broker. The routes may involve different intermediaries, so identify the proposed insurer and ask for the actual form and limits before comparing the headline coverage descriptions. 3 11

What to Confirm in Employment Practices Liability Insurance Quotes

  • Ask Founder Shield which carrier will issue the policy and what limit, retention, and covered-person terms are proposed. 3
  • Ask Counterpart which wholesale broker and insurer are involved and replace illustrative figures with the quote schedule. 10

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.

Counterpart

-/ 10

Review Score

No reviews found

We found no independent customer rating of Counterpart, so it has no Review Score. Its Trustpilot page shows no reviews, and BBB has no matching business.[7][10]

Read Counterpart reviews

Founder Shield

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

Offering Details

Counterpart vs Founder Shield: Employment Practices Liability Insurance: documented features by provider

CriteriaCounterpart Employment Practices LiabilityFounder Shield Employment Practices Liability Insurance
Role in This Line

Counterpart says insurance is offered through its producer and surplus-lines broker and describes wholesale-broker distribution. 1,4Company-reported. This does not identify the carrier for an EPL placement.

Founder Shield is a retail insurance brokerage, described on its site as “the innovation arm of The Baldwin Group,” and places Founder Shield Employment Practices Liability 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.

Founder Shield says EPLI is often purchased standalone but is sometimes packaged with Directors & Officers coverage, since employee-related suits frequently name corporate officers personally. 10Company-reported. EPLI product page.

Issuing Insurer

Confirm in your quote.

Founder Shield says it places policies, including Founder Shield Employment Practices Liability 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

Counterpart publishes a dedicated Employment Practices Liability product page within its business-insurance catalogue. 3Company-reported. The source summary does not establish a size, industry, state or applicant acceptance rule.

Founder Shield markets EPLI to startups hiring their first employees, retail and hospitality businesses with high turnover, professional-services firms, technology companies, and non-profits with volunteers. 10Company-reported. EPLI product page.

Coverage Features

Counterpart’s EPL page lists employment-related allegations as examples of the exposure its product addresses. 3Company-reported. The retained page description does not supply the policy’s complete covered-claim definition or exclusions.

Founder Shield lists defense costs, settlements and judgments, and claims of wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment and retaliation as what EPLI responds to. 10Company-reported. Product page; the issued policy and declarations control actual coverage.

Limits and Retentions

Counterpart labels its published EPL limit and retention figures as illustrative examples. 3Company-reported. Examples are not guaranteed or quoted terms; the assigned source record does not preserve a universal numeric offer.

Confirm in your quote.

How to Apply

Confirm in your quote.

You request Founder Shield Employment Practices Liability 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.

Full Comparison

More Counterpart vs Founder Shield Comparisons

Other Employment Practices Liability Insurance Comparisons

Sources

Counterpart

  1. Counterpart | Agentic Insurance™. Counterpart, Inc.; Current homepage: Quote Online CTA; brokers/small-business audiences; product list; performance claims; legal/footer qualifications, rendered lines 2–52, 55–70, 98–100, 282–287. Accessed 2026-09-29.
  2. About Counterpart. Counterpart, Inc.; Carrier disclosure and Our Story; underwriters named at line 13; company focus lines 22–36. Financial-strength note says ratings are as of 2024-02-26. Accessed 2026-09-29.
  3. Employment Practices Liability Insurance. Counterpart, Inc.; Retained provider source: product page lists eligibility, employment allegations and illustrative limits/retentions; prior access 2026-09-28. Direct reopen timed out in this session. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  4. How can I get insurance through Counterpart? Counterpart Knowledge Center; Retained source: article describes wholesale-broker referral route; prior access 2026-09-28. Accessed 2026-09-28.

Founder Shield

  1. Founder Shield. Founder Shield; Opening broker description; Specialized Practices; Smart Tech, Smarter People; quote and sign-in links. Accessed 2026-09-15.
  2. 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.
  3. 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.
  4. 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.
  5. 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.
  6. Employment Practices Liability Insurance. Founder Shield; What Is EPL Insurance?; Who Needs EPL Insurance Coverage?; What Does EPL Insurance Cover? Accessed 2026-09-23.
  7. About Us. Founder Shield; “Founder Shield is the innovation arm of The Baldwin Group”; company history and mission. Accessed 2026-09-23.

Employment Practices Liability Insurance Guide

  1. Employment Practices Liability Insurance. Insurance Information Institute; Opening; What EPLI covers; Steps to limit employment liability risk. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  2. Employment Practices Liability Coverage. Travelers; I.A/II.A p.1; III.A.4–6 p.7; II.F Employment Claim, PDF p.2; I.B p.1; II.U–V p.5; II.L p.3; III.A.9 and A.13, pp.7–8; III.B.2 p.8; IV.A Settlement, PDF pp.8–9. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  3. Liability Coverage Terms and Conditions. Travelers; III.F–H p.6; III.O pp.8–9; III.F p.6; III.B–D, PDF pp.3–5; III.E–F, PDF pp.5–6. 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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