Cowbell vs Relm Insurance Employment Practices Liability Insurance

Cowbell’s Zurich EPL module is wholesale Select Plus for smaller private companies; Relm markets EPL plus wage-and-hour that brokers place.

What Is Cowbell Insurance?

Cowbell is a specialty-insurance platform and agency focused on cyber risk for small and midsize businesses. Its U.S. catalogue also includes combined Technology E&O and cyber products and a Zurich management-liability offering distributed through appointed wholesalers. 1,2,3

Read the Cowbell profile

What Is Relm Insurance?

Relm is a specialty insurance business serving emerging industries. Its AI range distinguishes developer liability, gaps in existing liability insurance and losses from third-party AI failures. 5,6

Read the Relm Insurance profile

What Is Employment Practices Liability Insurance?

Employment practices liability insurance addresses claims alleging workplace wrongdoing, such as discrimination, harassment and wrongful termination. 8

Read the full coverage guide

Key Differences in Employment Practices Liability Insurance

Distribution

Cowbell’s EPL module is sold only through appointed Zurich E&S wholesalers on Cowbell’s API. Relm markets EPL, including wage-and-hour liability, as coverage brokers can place through Relm’s solutions, and its reviewed pages do not describe a direct online quote. Relm does not name an issuing insurer; Cowbell names Zurich admitted paper. 4 3 7

Wage-and-Hour Emphasis

Relm separately describes wage-and-hour coverage for minimum-wage underpayment, overtime mishandling and misclassification, and says those claims are increasingly pursued as individual and class actions at state and federal level, framed for large employers. Cowbell’s FAQs list discrimination, wrongful termination, harassment and other employment-related issues and do not describe a wage-and-hour product. Relm’s EPL description also includes breach of contract and emotional distress, which Cowbell’s FAQ does not list. 7 4

Growth and Size Stories

Cowbell’s screen is under 250 employees and under $50 million in assets for private companies. Relm says any company with employees, regardless of headcount, benefits from EPL, and highlights fast-growing companies as hiring scales. Large-employer wage-and-hour cover as Relm describes it sits outside Cowbell’s published SME band. 4 7

What to Confirm in Employment Practices Liability Insurance Quotes

  • Ask Relm whether wage-and-hour is available at your headcount and whether it is a separate policy from EPL. 7
  • Ask whether Select Plus includes wage-and-hour, breach-of-contract or emotional-distress grants Relm names. 4 7
  • Confirm the issuer: Zurich on Cowbell versus the unnamed Relm placement. 3 7
  • If you exceed 250 employees, treat Cowbell’s published screen as a question for the wholesaler, not an assumed fit. 4

Offering Details

Cowbell vs Relm Insurance Employment Practices Liability Insurance: documented features by provider

CriteriaCowbell / Zurich Select Plus Employment Practices LiabilityRelm Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPL/W&H)
Role in This Line

Employment practices liability (EPL) is one module within Cowbell's distribution of Zurich's Select Plus management liability product; Cowbell operates the platform, Zurich underwrites. Zurich's own page names this module 'Employment Practices and Third-Party Discrimination Liability,' broader than the plain 'EPL' shorthand Cowbell's FAQ uses. 4,3Company-reported. Management liability page intro and module list; Zurich page module-name section.

Relm markets employment practices liability, including wage and hour liability, as a coverage brokers can place for clients through Relm's adaptable coverage solutions. 7Company-reported. Relm line-of-business page (Relm sells through brokers); not a statement identifying the issuing insurer for a given placement.

Issuing Insurer

Cowbell and Zurich both say the Select Plus modules, including EPL, are written on Zurich admitted paper. Zurich's site footer names 'Zurich American Insurance Company' in its copyright notice, but neither page states that entity is the specific policy issuer for this EPL module. 4,3Company-reported. Management liability page intro; Zurich page intro and footer.

The reviewed page does not name a specific issuing insurer for EPL/wage-and-hour placements. 7Not publicly disclosed. Line-of-business page as read on 2026-09-23; a specific placement's insurer is product- and jurisdiction-specific.

Who It’s For

Cowbell targets this EPL module at private companies with under 250 employees and under $50M in assets, across industries such as retail, hospitality, and manufacturing. 4Company-reported. FAQ 'What size accounts are targeted?' and Target industries list.

Relm says any company with employees, regardless of headcount, benefits from EPL coverage, and highlights fast-growing companies as facing rising HR-related exposure as they scale hiring. 7Company-reported. Financial Lines page framing; not a guarantee of eligibility for a particular company.

Coverage Features

Cowbell describes EPL as covering claims related to employment practices, including discrimination, wrongful termination, harassment, and other employment-related issues. 4Company-reported. FAQ 'What is the difference between management liability and D&O?'.

Cowbell says EPL claims are the most common type of management liability claim overall, most frequently alleging discrimination, wrongful termination, harassment, or retaliation for a legally protected activity such as filing a complaint or whistleblowing. 4Company-reported. FAQ 'What is the most common management liability claim?'.

Relm says EPL covers legal defense and settlement costs for employee claims including harassment, discrimination, wrongful termination, breach of contract and emotional distress, and separately describes wage-and-hour coverage for issues such as minimum-wage underpayment, overtime mishandling and employee misclassification. 7Company-reported. Financial Lines page general description; the issued policy and declarations control.

Relm says wage-and-hour claims are increasingly pursued as individual and class actions at both the state and federal level, and frames its wage-and-hour coverage as addressing that growing exposure specifically for large employers. 7Company-reported. Financial Lines page 'What Is Wage and Hour Liability Insurance?' section.

Limits and Retentions

Neither the Cowbell page nor Zurich's own Select Plus page, both read in full, publishes EPL limit or retention amounts. 4,3Not publicly disclosed. Cowbell page and Zurich page, both read on 2026-09-23.

Not described in the reviewed sources.

How to Apply

This EPL module is accessed only by appointed Zurich E&S wholesalers through the Cowbell platform's API; it is not sold directly to businesses. 4Company-reported. FAQ 'How can I access the Zurich Select Plus management liability product through Cowbell?'.

Relm sells EPL coverage through insurance brokers; its reviewed pages do not describe a direct online quote. 7Company-reported. Financial Lines page framing; consistent with Relm's broader broker-distribution model.

Full Comparison

More Cowbell vs Relm Insurance Comparisons

Other Employment Practices Liability Insurance Comparisons

Sources

Cowbell

  1. Cowbell. Cowbell; What We Do; Assess, Insure, Respond and Improve; U.S. navigation; footer legal disclosure. Accessed 2026-09-15.
  2. Prime Tech Product Overview. Cowbell; PDF pp. 1–4: non-admitted combined Technology E&O and cyber for technology businesses up to $1 billion; up to $5 million; surplus lines in 50 states; edition PRIME TECH US0001 1025. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  3. Small and Midsize Business Management Liability | Zurich Select Plus. Zurich North America; Intro on the Zurich/Cowbell collaboration; module name 'Employment Practices and Third-Party Discrimination Liability'; FAQ 'What is the difference between management liability and D&O?' and 'What is the most common management liability claim?' (identical to Cowbell's page); Targeted industries list; footer copyright. Accessed 2026-09-23.
  4. Management liability coverage for small & medium enterprises. Cowbell; FAQ 'What is the difference between management liability and D&O?' (EPL definition); FAQ 'What is the most common management liability claim?' (EPL claim types); Target industries list. Accessed 2026-09-23.

Relm Insurance

  1. Relm Launches US MGA. Relm Insurance; Opening paragraphs describing US MGA and distribution partners. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  2. Relm Launches AI Liability Solutions. Relm Insurance; NOVAAI, PONTAAI and RESCAAI: Applicable Users and Coverage Highlights. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  3. Financial Lines Insurance. Relm Insurance; Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPL): What Is Employment Practices Liability Insurance?; What Is Wage and Hour Liability Insurance?; Growing Fast? Make Sure Your Cover Keeps Up; Who Needs Employment Practices Liability? 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.

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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