What Is Cowbell Insurance?
Cowbell suits small and midsize businesses seeking cyber options by company size, with technology E&O and Zurich management-liability options also available; firms needing broad commercial coverage should compare a full-service broker. Some security services cost extra. 1,2,3
Zurich U.S. Business Insurance: Products, Access, and Claims
Zurich U.S. serves Middle Market businesses and large or national accounts with commercial property-casualty and specialty insurance. Buyers can explore product lines and work through an agent or broker; the insurer named on a quote or policy identifies which Zurich company underwrites that coverage. 5,6
What Is Crime Insurance?
Crime insurance can help reimburse specified business losses from theft and fraud, including employee theft and forgery. Compare those protections separately and ask whether a payment sent after an impersonation scam is covered. 8,9,10,11,12
Key Differences in Crime Insurance
Select Plus access and standalone availability
Cowbell describes crime as one module in Zurich’s Select Plus management-liability product, with Zurich underwriting the module and Cowbell operating the platform. Access is limited to appointed Zurich E&S wholesalers through the platform API, not direct business purchase. Zurich’s broader crime materials also describe standalone policies and package solutions for public and private companies. A buyer should distinguish the Select Plus wholesale route from a separate Zurich crime placement and ask which route the broker is using. 4 7
Company size and coverage detail
Cowbell targets its module to private companies under 250 employees and under $50 million in assets, and describes protection against employee or third-party theft, fraud and embezzlement. Zurich describes employee theft and forgery, computer fraud and funds-transfer fraud in its crime materials. Buyers should ask how Cowbell’s module defines each event and whether its eligibility fits the company; Zurich’s detailed terms should be confirmed in the proposed standalone or packaged form. 4 7
What to Confirm in Crime Insurance Quotes
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.
Cowbell
Review Score
1 rated source
Cowbell has one public rating we could find: 1.0 out of 5 on SourceForge from three reviews in 2023. That's too few and too old to say much.[8]
Read Cowbell reviewsZurich U.S.
Review Score
No reviews found
The available Zurich review evidence is mixed and comes from distinct populations: a car-rental-business editorial rating, broad global and U.S. review-platform snapshots, and a BBB business-profile grade. These are not a representative measure of every Zurich commercial policy or claim.[1][4][5][6][7]
Read Zurich U.S. reviewsOffering Details
Cowbell vs Zurich U.S.: Crime Insurance: documented features by provider
| Criteria | Cowbell / Zurich Select Plus Crime Coverage | Zurich Commercial Crime Insurance |
|---|---|---|
| Role in This Line | Crime coverage is one module within Cowbell's distribution of Zurich's Select Plus management liability product; Cowbell operates the platform, Zurich underwrites the module. Zurich's own page lists 'Crime Insurance' as one of the four modules a buyer can combine. 4,3Company-reported. Management liability page intro and module list; Zurich page module-name section. | Confirm in your quote. |
| Issuing Insurer | Cowbell and Zurich both say the Select Plus modules, including crime, 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 module. 4,3Company-reported. Management liability page intro; Zurich page intro and footer. | Confirm in your quote. |
| Who It’s For | Cowbell targets this crime module at private companies with under 250 employees and under $50M in assets, across the same target industries listed for the broader Select Plus product. 4Company-reported. FAQ 'What size accounts are targeted?' and Target industries list. | Zurich offers commercial crime insurance as standalone policies and as package solutions for public and private companies. 7Company-reported. Zurich U.S. brand; issuer varies by product/state; Commercial Crime Insurance; United States. Product structure and company class only; terms, underwriting and availability vary. |
| Coverage Features | Cowbell describes crime coverage as protecting against losses resulting from criminal acts such as theft, fraud, and embezzlement committed by employees or third parties. 4Company-reported. FAQ 'What is the difference between management liability and D&O?'. | Zurich describes employee-theft coverage for direct loss or damage to money, securities or property caused by employee theft or forgery. 7Company-reported. Zurich U.S. brand; issuer varies by product/state; Commercial Crime Insurance; United States. Summary only; form definitions, exclusions, limits and conditions control. Zurich describes computer-fraud losses as loss of or damage to money, securities or property resulting directly from computer use to fraudulently cause a transfer originating from the insured’s business or banking premises. It separately describes Funds Transfer Fraud as direct loss of money or securities from fraudulent instructions to a financial institution to transfer funds from the insured’s transfer account. Policy forms govern. 7Company-reported. Zurich U.S. brand; issuer varies by product/state; Commercial Crime Insurance; United States. These are the page’s summary descriptions, not policy definitions. Actual definitions, causation requirements, exclusions and limits are in policy forms. |
| Limits and Retentions | Neither the Cowbell page nor Zurich's own Select Plus page, both read in full, publishes crime-coverage limit or retention amounts. 4,3Not publicly disclosed. Cowbell page and Zurich page, both read on 2026-09-23. | Confirm in your quote. |
| Risk Services | Neither reviewed page describes crime-specific risk-control services such as employee-dishonesty prevention programs; both describe the Select Plus product's claims backing only at the whole-product level. 4,3Not publicly disclosed. Management liability page and Zurich page, both read on 2026-09-23. | Zurich Resilience Solutions offers crime-risk assessment services intended to identify vulnerabilities, followed by specialist recommendations for crime resilience. 7Company-reported. Zurich U.S. brand; exact risk-service provider/issuer relationship not mapped; Commercial Crime Insurance risk-assessment service; United States. Company-described service; no guarantee of loss prevention and no insured coverage grant. |
| How to Apply | This crime 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?'. | Confirm in your quote. |
Full Comparison
More Cowbell vs Zurich U.S. Comparisons
Other Crime Insurance Comparisons
Sources
Cowbell
- Cowbell. Cowbell; What We Do; Assess, Insure, Respond and Improve; U.S. navigation; footer legal disclosure. Accessed 2026-09-15.
- 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.
- Small and Midsize Business Management Liability | Zurich Select Plus. Zurich North America; Intro on the Zurich/Cowbell collaboration; module name 'Crime Insurance'; FAQ 'What is the difference between management liability and D&O?' (identical to Cowbell's page); Targeted industries list; footer copyright. Accessed 2026-09-23.
- Management liability coverage for small & medium enterprises. Cowbell; FAQ 'What is the difference between management liability and D&O?' (Crime Coverage definition); Target industries list; FAQ on access and account size. Accessed 2026-09-23.
Zurich U.S.
- About Us | Zurich U.S. | Commercial Insurance. Zurich U.S.; About Zurich U.S.; customer and industry description; FAQ on U.S. product focus. Accessed 2026-09-28.
- Agents and Brokers | Zurich U.S. Zurich U.S.; Agent/broker route and locator. Accessed 2026-09-28.
- Commercial Crime & Fidelity Insurance Coverage | Zurich U.S. Zurich U.S.; Crime product, standalone/package availability, loss examples, risk assessment services. Accessed 2026-09-28.
Crime Insurance Guide
- Commercial Insurance Guide. California Department of Insurance; Crime. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Crime Non-Financial Applications and Forms. Travelers; Opening paragraph; Sample Policy Forms. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Crime Terms and Conditions. The Travelers Companies, Inc.; I.A–G, printed/PDF pages 1–4; III.RR, printed/PDF p.13; V.B.1–2, printed/PDF pp.18–20; Consideration, printed/PDF p.1; III.P p.8; V.A.3 pp.16–17; V.A.4 p.17; V.B.3 p.20; I.A.3 p.1; III.C p.7; III.S pp.8–9; III.II and III.KK p.12; III.QQ p.13; V.A.5 pp.17–18 (printed/PDF pages); IV.J–O, printed/PDF pages 14–15. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Commercial Crime Coverage Application. Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America; I–III pages 1–2; IX–XI pages 3–4; V–VII, printed/PDF pages 2–3. Accessed 2026-09-16.
