Founder Shield vs Lockton Product Liability Insurance

Founder Shield places product liability with A-rated carriers for manufacturers and e-commerce; Lockton brokers custom product-liability and companion recall structures globally.

What Is Founder Shield Insurance?

Founder Shield is a commercial insurance broker for venture-backed and growing businesses. Buyers can request coverage through its online portal and work with advisors on insurer selection, policy changes and claims reporting. 1,2,3,4,5

Read the Founder Shield profile

What Is Lockton?

Lockton is a privately held insurance brokerage that arranges commercial risk, employee benefits and retirement programs. US pages describe a technology practice and intermediary placement with insurers, not Lockton as the policy’s insurer. 8,9,10

Read the Lockton profile

What Is Product Liability Insurance?

Product liability insurance addresses liability for injury or damage associated with a defective product that a business manufactures, wholesales, distributes or sells. 13,14,15,16

Read the full coverage guide

Key Differences in Product Liability Insurance

A-Rated Panel Versus Global Market Design

Founder Shield and Lockton both broker product liability rather than underwriting it. Founder Shield says it places this line only with carriers rated A- or better by AM Best, chosen for the client’s industry, after a website or advisor request. Lockton lists product liability on its General & Product Liability page and designs custom structures with insurers across the global market. Neither Lockton’s reviewed pages nor Founder Shield’s product page name the issuing insurer for a given account. 7 3 11

Recall Next to Liability

Lockton lists product recall coverage alongside product liability on the same page, so a manufacturer client can have Lockton place both the liability program and a related recall-expense program. Founder Shield describes manufacturing defects, design defects and inadequate labeling as product-liability scenarios covering defense fees, settlements or judgments, and medical costs, without listing a companion recall program on the reviewed page. 11 6

Who They Name

Founder Shield markets the line to manufacturers, distributors, and retail/e-commerce companies that make or sell physical products. Lockton says it serves global manufacturers, business-to-business service providers and consumer-products companies among others, alongside REITs, contractors and healthcare companies. 6 11

Services Gap Versus Structure Design

The reviewed Founder Shield page does not describe risk-management or product-safety services Founder Shield itself provides for this line. Lockton’s pages describe designing custom structures with insurers rather than a self-serve application. 6 11

What to Confirm in Product Liability Insurance Quotes

  • Ask Founder Shield which A-rated carrier it approached for your industry. 3
  • Ask Lockton which markets it used for the liability layer and whether a recall program is quoted with it. 11
  • Compare limits and retentions on both placements; neither set of reviewed pages publishes figures. 6 11
  • If you are a global manufacturer, confirm whether Lockton’s custom structure or Founder Shield’s A-rated placement is what you are being offered. 11 3

Offering Details

Founder Shield vs Lockton Product Liability Insurance: documented features by provider

CriteriaFounder Shield Product Liability InsuranceLockton General & Product Liability Insurance Brokerage
Role in This Line

Founder Shield is a retail insurance brokerage, described on its site as “the innovation arm of The Baldwin Group,” and places Founder Shield Product Liability Insurance with third-party carriers rather than underwriting the policy itself. 7Company-reported. About-us page; applies to Founder Shield's brokerage model generally, restated here for this line.

Lockton lists product liability on its General & Product Liability page and brokers it rather than underwriting it, designing custom structures with insurers across the global market. 11Company-reported. General & Product Liability page as read 2026-09-23.

Issuing Insurer

Founder Shield says it places policies, including Founder Shield Product 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. 3Company-reported. General carrier-selection FAQ, not specific to this line's placements.

Neither page names the insurers Lockton places product liability coverage with. 11,12Not publicly disclosed. General & Product Liability and Casualty pages checked 2026-09-23.

Who It’s For

Founder Shield markets product liability to manufacturers, distributors, and retail/e-commerce companies that make or sell physical products. 6Company-reported. Product Liability Insurance product page.

Lockton says it serves global manufacturers, business-to-business service providers and consumer products companies among others on this page — the segments most exposed to product liability risk — alongside REITs, contractors and healthcare companies. 11Company-reported. General & Product Liability page as read 2026-09-23. Example industries, not a complete eligibility matrix.

Coverage Features

Founder Shield lists manufacturing defects, design defects and inadequate labeling as scenarios the policy responds to, covering defense fees, settlements or judgments, and medical costs. 6Company-reported. Product page; the issued policy and declarations control actual coverage.

Lockton lists product recall coverage alongside product liability on the same page, meaning a manufacturer client can have Lockton place both the liability program and a related recall-expense program. 11Company-reported. General & Product Liability page as read 2026-09-23. A capability list, not a specimen policy.

Risk Services

The reviewed page does not describe risk-management or product-safety services Founder Shield itself provides for this line; it notes only that insurers generally may offer such services. 6Not found in reviewed sources. Product Liability Insurance product page, checked 2026-09-23.

Not described in the reviewed sources.

How to Apply

You request Founder Shield Product 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. 7,3Company-reported. About-us and carrier-selection pages describe the general placement process, not a line-specific application form.

Not described in the reviewed sources.

Full Comparison

More Founder Shield vs Lockton Comparisons

Other Product Liability Insurance Comparisons

Sources

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. Quote Portal. Founder Shield; Public landing screen, Create Account and Sign In links. 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. Claims. Founder Shield; Our Approach; How We Support Claims Management, steps 1–5; Make a claim link. Accessed 2026-09-15.
  6. Product Liability Insurance. Founder Shield; What Is Product Liability Insurance?; Who Needs Product Liability Insurance Coverage?; What Does Product Liability 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.

Lockton

  1. Lockton United States. Lockton; Opening description of independent insurance brokerage for risk, benefits and retirement; Ask an Expert link to contact-us. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  2. Technology. Lockton; Industry introduction; cyber liability heading; dedicated technology team; listed services including claims advocacy, contract review, directors and officers liability, and international program design; 24/7 service model. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  3. US Terms of Business. Lockton; Opening entity definition; Surplus Lines; Use of a Particular Insurer; Compensation Disclosure; servicing, claims handling and renewal language in Confidentiality section; Intermediaries. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  4. US > General & Product Liability. Lockton; Tailored solutions intro; industries named (global manufacturer, business-to-business service provider, consumer products company, REIT, contractor, healthcare company); liability solutions list including Product liability and Product recall. Accessed 2026-09-23.
  5. Casualty Insurance. Lockton; Casualty Insurance Solutions list: Auto, Cargo, General & Product Liability, Umbrella & Excess Liability, Workers' Compensation. Accessed 2026-09-23.

Product Liability Insurance Guide

  1. Get business insurance. U.S. Small Business Administration; Six common types of business insurance table. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  2. Facts + Statistics: Product liability. Insurance Information Institute; Product liability insurance opening definition (manufacturer, distributor, or seller; defective condition causing personal injury or damage); Product recall insurance sentence. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  3. Product liability, recall and contamination insurance. Insurance Information Institute; Product liability opening (design/manufacture/distribute/sell; injury, property damage or death; added to GL or stand-alone); What could go wrong? (roles; directions/warnings); Covering the costs of a product recall; Contamination insurance. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  4. Commercial Insurance Guide. California Department of Insurance; Commercial General Liability Coverage: premises, products liability and completed operations; major exclusions including damage to your work, impaired property, sistership liability and failure to perform; Limits of Insurance products and completed operations aggregate; glossary Sistership Liability. 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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