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.
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What Does Directors and Officers Insurance Cover?
After a funding round, investors may challenge board disclosures; legal defense bills can reduce the amount left for a settlement. 3,4 4
D&O insurance can address covered claims alleging wrongful acts in your organization’s management. 1The Costs of a Covered Claim
Individuals and the Company
Indemnification means the company pays on a leader's behalf. D&O can protect the individual when the company doesn't indemnify them, reimburse the company when it does, and cover specified claims against the company itself. Confirm which of those protections you've bought; they can have different terms. 3,4 3,4
3,4Who Needs Directors and Officers Insurance?
Investors, employees or regulators may challenge decisions made by your leaders, and a lawsuit can name the company too. 5
Directors and Officers Insurance Coverage Examples
How Do You Compare Directors and Officers Insurance Coverage and Costs?
The Scope of Company Coverage
Defense Expenses and Retentions
What Exclusions and Conditions Should You Check in Directors and Officers Insurance?
Earlier Disputes and Reporting
Changes at Renewal
How Does Directors and Officers Insurance Compare With Related Coverage?
Professional Liability
Employment Practices Liability
What Do You Need for Directors and Officers Insurance Quotes?
Ownership, Finances and Planned Changes
Directors and Officers Insurance: Key Terms in Plain English
Individual and Reimbursement Protection
Direct protection when the company cannot pay on a leader’s behalf, or reimbursement when it does. 3,4
Entity Coverage
Protection for the company itself. A securities-only grant is different from broader company wrongful-act coverage. 3,4
Frequently Asked Questions About Directors and Officers Insurance
Does D&O Cover the Company as Well as Its Leaders?
Does D&O Cover the Company as Well as Its Leaders?
Does D&O Replace Employment Practices Coverage?
Does D&O Replace Employment Practices Coverage?
Don't rely on D&O alone for employment claims. Confirm whether your management-liability program includes EPLI and what that part covers. 1
Can D&O Insurance Pay Legal Defense Costs?
Can D&O Insurance Pay Legal Defense Costs?
Covered D&O losses can include legal defense costs as well as settlements and judgments. Read the offered terms to see which costs fall within the protection you are buying. 1
What Should I Check When Renewing D&O Insurance?
What Should I Check When Renewing D&O Insurance?
Review the exclusions and any changes from the expiring policy. The D&O label alone does not tell you which management-related claims remain covered after renewal. 2
What Is D&O Insurance?
D&O is liability insurance for claims alleging wrongful acts by an organization’s directors or officers.
What Is Side A D&O Insurance?
Side A is D&O coverage for individuals when the organization cannot indemnify them.
Does D&O Cover Bankruptcy?
D&O can cover claims against your directors and officers that follow a bankruptcy, such as trustee or creditor suits, but it never pays the company's debts.
Does D&O Cover Board Members?
Yes, D&O covers board members for claims over their board service, as long as they fit the policy's definition of an insured person.
Does D&O Cover Breach of Contract?
Usually not: a plain contract dispute isn't a management wrongful act, though a claim that also alleges misleading management conduct may be covered.
Does D&O Cover Breach of Fiduciary Duty?
D&O may cover a fiduciary-duty claim about corporate management, while benefit-plan duties may require fiduciary liability insurance.
Does D&O Cover Employees?
Some D&O policies include employees as insureds for defined acts in an insured capacity.
Does D&O Cover Employment Claims?
D&O may cover some claims naming leaders over workplace decisions, but EPLI is the coverage designed for employment claims.
D&O Insurance Guides by State
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Which Insurance Providers Offer D&O Insurance?
AIG Directors & Officers Liability
Alliance Risk arranges directors and officers liability insurance.
Amelia Risk arranges directors and officers liability.
Aon describes D&O brokerage and program services in a global practice; this does not identify the producer, insurer or state availability for a particular U.S. placement.
Beazley offers directors and officers liability insurance for private organizations through ExecuGuard.
Executive First D&O liability materials describe separate public-company and private-company products.
CFC offers directors and officers liability in its US management-liability package for eligible organizations outside California, excluding US publicly traded companies.
Chubb offers directors and officers liability insurance for smaller privately held companies through ForeFront.
Coalition offers directors and officers liability through its executive-risks product for private and nonprofit US organizations.
Corgi lists directors and officers insurance among its business insurance offerings.
Distinct private-company and nonprofit D&O product pages; class and insurer vary by placement.
Coverdash lists directors and officers insurance in its coverage catalog.
Cowbell offers Zurich Select Plus D&O for small and medium private companies, available through appointed Zurich E&S wholesalers.
Embroker lists directors and officers insurance with a quote route.
Founder Shield lists directors and officers insurance among its core offerings.
Gallagher arranges directors and officers liability.
Heffernan arranges directors and officers liability.
HUB International arranges directors and officers liability insurance.
Kinro lists directors and officers insurance and compares business details with carrier appetite.
A group brand spanning personal and commercial insurance businesses; its business unit pages describe small-commercial cover for small businesses and commercial, specialty, surety, and reinsurance solutions for mid-size and large businesses.
Lockton arranges directors and officers liability insurance.
Markel private and nonprofit D&O
Marsh arranges directors and officers liability insurance.
Business insurance and employee health and benefits, with retirement, wealth, and private-client services also listed for the United States and Canada.
Nationwide Management Liability & Specialty markets a distinct D&O product. The reviewed materials do not establish issuer or form for a particular risk.
Newfront lists D&O for private and public companies within its executive-risk services.
Relm lists directors and officers liability for placement through brokers.
RiskCube arranges directors and officers liability insurance for startups.
Risklytics arranges directors and officers liability insurance for robotics, hardware and AI businesses.
StartupInsurance.ai arranges directors and officers liability insurance for startups.
TechInsurance arranges directors and officers liability insurance for small businesses.
Listed within management-liability coverage for named business sectors; the dedicated D&O page discusses advisory programs for public companies, IPOs and SPACs.
The Hartford offers directors and officers liability for private, public and nonprofit organizations.
Marketed within THREE’s combined commercial policy; the quote and issued form determine the protection.
Travelers offers directors and officers liability insurance.
USI arranges directors and officers liability insurance.
Vouch lists directors and officers insurance in its technology-company programs.
WithCoverage reviews D&O exposures in technology-company insurance programs and offers broker-transition support.
Zurich markets directors and officers liability insurance.
