Heffernan Insurance Brokers vs 
Relm Insurance Fiduciary Liability Insurance
Heffernan brokers fiduciary for family offices and businesses; Relm sells the coverage through brokers to startups adding benefit plans.
What Is Heffernan Insurance Brokers?
Heffernan Insurance Brokers is an independent, Walnut Creek–headquartered retail brokerage that arranges business insurance, employee benefits, and related services. Its technology practice markets to mid- and late-stage companies, including venture-funded and pre-IPO firms. 1,2,3
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
What Is Fiduciary Liability Insurance?
Fiduciary liability insurance addresses covered claims alleging breaches of duties in managing employee benefit plans. 8,9
Key Differences in Fiduciary Liability Insurance
Direct Broker Versus Wholesale-Style Distribution
Heffernan shops and places fiduciary liability for its own clients. Relm markets fiduciary liability as coverage brokers can place for companies that manage employee benefit plans, and its reviewed pages do not describe a direct online quote. 3 7
If you already work with Heffernan, you are talking to the placing broker. If you are looking at Relm, you still need a broker relationship, which could be Heffernan or another firm. 3 7
Family Offices Versus Early-Benefit Startups
Heffernan names family offices, trust companies, trustees, advisors, private equity, foundations and financial institutions, plus general business clients. Relm targets companies that manage pensions or health insurance and specifically calls out startups and growth-stage companies that introduce benefits early to attract talent. 4 7
Relm says the cover protects plan sponsors, trustees, administrators, investment committees, and directors and officers with discretionary authority under ERISA, including legal fees, settlements and judgments. Heffernan’s family-office page lists the line without that insured roster. 4 7
Assessment Service Versus Coverage Description Only
Heffernan’s family-office practice describes a Risk Management Assessment and claims navigation, reached through a Private Client Group contact. Relm’s reviewed fiduciary page does not describe dedicated plan-administration review or risk-control services beyond the general coverage description. 4 7
What to Confirm in Fiduciary Liability Insurance Quotes
- Clarify whether Relm would be a market Heffernan can access or a separate path through another broker. 3 7
- Ask Relm’s placing broker whether investment committees and directors with discretionary authority are insureds. 7
- Ask Heffernan whether a family-office assessment is in scope if you are a startup rather than a trust or family office. 4
- Ask Heffernan which market it would use and ask Relm’s placing broker which company would issue the form. 3 7
Offering Details
Heffernan Insurance Brokers vs Relm Insurance Fiduciary Liability Insurance: documented features by provider
| Criteria | Heffernan Fiduciary Liability Insurance | Relm Fiduciary Liability Insurance |
|---|---|---|
| Role in This Line | Heffernan places fiduciary liability coverage within its general corporate/executive-protection lineup and again within a dedicated family-office and financial-institution practice. It shops and places the coverage with insurers rather than underwriting it. 3,4Company-reported. Business Insurance and Family Office page listings; no dedicated fiduciary-liability product page was found. | Relm markets fiduciary liability as a coverage brokers can place for clients that manage employee benefit plans. 7Company-reported. Relm line-of-business page (Relm sells through brokers); not a statement identifying the issuing insurer for a given placement. |
| Issuing Insurer | The reviewed pages do not name the insurer or insurers that issue fiduciary liability policies Heffernan places for either business clients or family offices. 3,4Not publicly disclosed. Business Insurance and Family Office pages as read on 2026-09-23. | The reviewed page does not name a specific issuing insurer for fiduciary liability 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 | Heffernan offers fiduciary liability to two named segments: general business clients through its business-insurance brokerage, and family offices, trust companies, trustees, financial advisors, private equity firms, foundations, and other financial institutions through its family-office practice. 3,4Company-reported. Direct practice-page listings; no minimum size or asset-under-management threshold was published for the coverage specifically. | Relm targets companies that manage employee benefit plans such as pensions or health insurance, specifically calling out startups and growth-stage companies that introduce benefits early to attract talent. 7Company-reported. Financial Lines page framing; not a guarantee of eligibility for a particular company. |
| Coverage Features | On the family-office page, fiduciary liability insurance is listed alongside directors and officers, professional liability, employment practices liability, trustee liability, and other management-liability-adjacent lines as coverage the practice can arrange, without describing the policy's insuring agreement or exclusions. 4Company-reported. Family Office page as read on 2026-09-23. | Relm says fiduciary liability protects plan sponsors, trustees, administrators, investment committees, and directors and officers with 'discretionary authority' under ERISA, covering legal fees, settlement and judgment costs tied to employee benefit plans. 7Company-reported. Financial Lines page general description; the issued policy and declarations control. |
| Limits and Retentions | Neither page publishes a fiduciary-liability limit, retention, or premium range. 3,4Not found in reviewed sources. Business Insurance and Family Office pages as read on 2026-09-23. | Not described in the reviewed sources. |
| Risk Services | Heffernan's family-office practice describes a Risk Management Assessment: itemizing a client's structures, assets, and exposures; crafting insurance and risk-management strategies to close coverage gaps; and helping navigate claims, for its fiduciary and financial-institution client base. 4Company-reported. Family Office page as read on 2026-09-23; a company-described service, not a measured outcome. | The reviewed fiduciary liability page does not describe dedicated plan-administration review or risk-control services beyond the general coverage description. 7Not found in reviewed sources. Financial Lines page as read on 2026-09-23. |
| How to Apply | The family-office practice's fiduciary-liability coverage is reached through a named Private Client Group specialist contact rather than a self-service online quote flow. 4Company-reported. Family Office page as read on 2026-09-23; the general business-insurance page's fiduciary listing routes through Heffernan's general Contact Us form instead. | Relm sells fiduciary liability 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
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Sources
Heffernan Insurance Brokers
- Our Story. Heffernan Insurance Brokers; Headquartered in Walnut Creek; nationwide presence; founded 1988; employee owned; niche practices including technology. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Technology Company Insurance. Heffernan Insurance Brokers; Pre-IPO and venture-funded heading; mid to late stage specialization; global expansion copy; self-insurance strategies; Key Markets list; Why Heffernan broker history; Joseph Talmadge practice leader; FAQ. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Heffernan Business Insurance Brokerage. Heffernan Insurance Brokers; Corporate and executive protection, such as employment practices liability, directors and officers liability, fiduciary responsibility, cyber liability, and kidnap and ransom are also available through our comprehensive business insurance programs. Accessed 2026-09-23.
- Family Office. Heffernan Insurance Brokers; We serve: Family offices, Trust companies, Individual and professional trustees, Financial advisors/CPAs/attorneys, Private equity firms, Foundations, Financial institutions; Coverage for Family Offices, Trustees & Financial Firms: ... Fiduciary liability insurance ...; Risk Management Assessment section; contact Lacey Garrison. Accessed 2026-09-23.
Relm Insurance
- Relm Launches US MGA. Relm Insurance; Opening paragraphs describing US MGA and distribution partners. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Relm Launches AI Liability Solutions. Relm Insurance; NOVAAI, PONTAAI and RESCAAI: Applicable Users and Coverage Highlights. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Financial Lines Insurance. Relm Insurance; Fiduciary Liability Insurance: What Is Fiduciary Liability Insurance?; Make Sure Benefits Don't Backfire; What Does Fiduciary Insurance Cover? Accessed 2026-09-23.
Fiduciary Liability Insurance Guide
- Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2008-04: Guidance Regarding ERISA Fidelity Bonding Requirements. U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration; Q2 pp.2–3. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Fiduciary Liability Insurance. Travelers; What Is Fiduciary Liability Insurance? Accessed 2026-09-16.
