Markel Insurance: Specialty Business and Products
Markel Insurance is Markel Group's specialty and small-business insurance business, with offerings across packages, workers' compensation, cyber, professional and management liability, property, marine, and surety. Products use different insurers and distribution routes, so compare the issuer and terms shown on the specific quote. 1,2
THREE small business insurance: coverage, issuer and buying routes
THREE markets a packaged commercial insurance product through a direct quote route and partner agents. Berkshire Hathaway Direct Insurance Company is named as issuer on THREE’s sample policy. 4,5
What Is Directors and Officers Insurance?
D&O insurance can help pay covered defense costs and losses from claims against company leaders over management decisions. If your organization has a board or executives, check whether the company itself is insured and whether legal bills reduce the limit. 7,8,9
Key Differences in D&O Insurance
Separate management-liability option or BOP component
Markel lists D&O as standalone or blended within private-company and nonprofit management-liability offerings. THREE presents Directors and Officers as one component of its combined Business Owners Policy rather than describing a separate standalone form. That affects how buyers assemble coverage: ask Markel whether D&O is paired with other management lines, and ask THREE whether D&O appears in the specific package and how it is scheduled. 3 6
Customer types and quote path
Markel names portfolio companies, PEOs, hospitality, energy, healthcare, education, and associations among its D&O audiences. THREE directs small-business prospects to an online quote and says licensed Small Business Advisors can help; its sample declarations identify Berkshire Hathaway Direct Insurance Company as issuer. The route is more explicitly digital at THREE, while Markel’s listed sectors span private and nonprofit organizations. 3 4 5
What to Confirm in D&O 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.
Markel Insurance
Review Score
2 rated sources
There is little public customer feedback on Markel. Trustpilot shows 2.5 out of 5 from just 5 reviews, and BBB lists 12 complaints closed in the last three years.[4][3]
Read Markel Insurance reviewsTHREE by Berkshire Hathaway
Review Score
2 rated sources
The inspected sources report separate measures: NerdWallet’s 4.0/5 editorial rating is excluded from the source-rating average; Trustpilot displayed 2.5/5 from five user posts and BBB displayed 4.8/5 from 265 reviews. Trustpilot and BBB include different purchase, service and agent/intermediary interactions, not a verified common policyholder cohort. BBB separately lists complaints. Any source-rating average weights eligible platforms equally and is not a pooled, representative customer-experience estimate or a claims-quality measure.[4][3][1][2]
Read THREE by Berkshire Hathaway reviewsOffering Details
Markel Insurance vs THREE by Berkshire Hathaway: D&O Insurance: documented features by provider
| Criteria | Markel private and nonprofit D&O | THREE Business Owners Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Role in This Line | Markel lists directors-and-officers liability within private-company and nonprofit management-liability offerings, as standalone or blended coverage. 3Company-reported. U.S. private/nonprofit product page; exact coverage structure varies by policy. | THREE presents Directors and Officers as a component of its combined Business Owners Policy rather than identifying it as a separate standalone policy on the reviewed product page. 6Company-reported. Company-described U.S. package structure. The page does not establish underwriting terms or that every listed category will be included for every applicant. |
| Issuing Insurer | Confirm in your quote. | The linked sample policy's declarations identify Berkshire Hathaway Direct Insurance Company as issuer. 5Company-reported. This is the issuer named on the public sample only; the sample does not establish the issuing entity for every state-specific quote or buyer's issued policy. |
| Who It’s For | The page names private equity/portfolio companies, PEOs, hospitality, energy and healthcare among private-sector customer types, plus healthcare, education and associations among nonprofits. 3Company-reported. Examples are not an exhaustive appetite or eligibility list. | The reviewed product page does not state separate eligibility rules for Directors and Officers; the general quote and advisor route is not proof that a particular business qualifies for it. 6,4Not publicly disclosed. Eligibility and state availability remain unestablished for an individual risk until THREE returns its quote and applicable forms. |
| Coverage Features | The page describes D&O protection for organizational leaders against covered claims such as mismanagement, breach of duty or regulatory violations, with defense costs, settlements and judgments subject to policy terms. 3Company-reported. Illustrative marketing description; not policy wording. | THREE's Business Owners Policy page lists Directors & Officers among its marketed coverage categories in the combined policy. This describes the product page, not whether the category appears in a particular quote or responds to a loss. 6,5Company-reported. Official THREE package marketing for Directors and Officers. The sample policy is state-selectable and does not establish that this item is included in every quote or issued policy. |
| Limits and Retentions | Confirm in your quote. | The reviewed public product page does not state a separate limit or deductible for Directors and Officers; THREE says the quote-specific insurance summary lists limits and deductibles. 6,5Not publicly disclosed. No number is inferred from the sample policy. The quote and issued declarations control the buyer-specific limit and deductible. |
| How to Apply | Confirm in your quote. | THREE directs small-business prospects to an online quote and says licensed Small Business Advisors can help with the process. 4Company-reported. This is the route for the overall THREE product. It does not show whether Directors and Officers will be offered for a particular business or whether a customer can bind that line without an issued policy. |
Full Comparison
More Markel Insurance vs THREE by Berkshire Hathaway Comparisons
Other D&O Insurance Comparisons
Sources
Markel Insurance
- About us. Markel; Markel at a glance; description of Markel Insurance within Markel Group Inc. Accessed 2026-09-28.
- Markel Group Inc. 2025 Form 10-K. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission; filed by Markel Group Inc.; Cover page; Part I, Item 1 Business—Markel Insurance, U.S. Wholesale and Specialty, Programs and Solutions; Part II, Item 7/8 for group and segment risks. Accessed 2026-09-28.
- Private and Nonprofit Management Liability Insurance. Markel; What we offer; private/nonprofit segment; D&O, EPL, fiduciary and optional coverage sections. Accessed 2026-09-29.
THREE by Berkshire Hathaway
- Jargon-free small business insurance - THREE by Berkshire Hathaway. Berkshire Hathaway Direct Insurance Company, dba THREE; Lines 23, 39, 70–81 and 406–410: business location quote entry, single-policy description, issuer, business focus, online quote and licensed Small Business Advisor route. Quote entry inspected without submitting a form. Accessed 2026-09-30.
- The Policy: 3 Jargon-free pages - THREE by Berkshire Hathaway. Berkshire Hathaway Direct Insurance Company, dba THREE; State-selectable sample policy: Summary (Declarations) identifies Berkshire Hathaway Direct Insurance Company as issuer and says the insurance summary lists limits and deductibles; sample policy text and state selection do not establish terms for a particular quote or issued policy. Accessed 2026-09-30.
- Business Owners Policy - THREE by Berkshire Hathaway. Berkshire Hathaway Direct Insurance Company, dba THREE; Product page: “No need for multiple policies” and one comprehensive policy; Business Liability, Property and Business Auto categories and the listed line names. Product page footer identifies Berkshire Hathaway Direct Insurance Company, dba THREE. Accessed 2026-09-30.
D&O Insurance Guide
- Glossary of Business Insurance Terms. The Hartford; Directors and Officers Liability Insurance; Errors and Omissions Insurance; Employment Practices Liability Insurance. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- The Chubb Primary Directors & Officers and Entity Securities Liability Insurance. Chubb Group of Insurance Companies; hosted by eperils; I.A–C p.1; I.C p.1; I and III.A–B pp.1–2; VI Reporting pp.3–4. Accessed 2026-09-16.
- Private Company Directors and Officers Liability Coverage. Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America; I.A–C p.1; I.C p.1; Header p.1 and VI.A pp.6–7. Accessed 2026-09-16.
