Product Liability in Ohio

Ohio generally requires a product-liability action within two years after the claim accrues, ordinarily when injury or loss occurs. A separate ten-year rule generally prevents a claim from accruing against a manufacturer or supplier more than ten years after delivery to the first non-component-business purchaser or lessee. Fraud contributing to harm, a qualifying unexpired written safety warranty, a late-accruing claim, disability, and specified exposure claims have statutory exceptions. Ohio also generally makes a supplier liable for compensatory damages only for its negligence or its own nonconforming representation, while treating it as a manufacturer in specified supply-chain, control, and manufacturer-identity circumstances. Track first-customer delivery, supplier identity, product changes, and written warranty terms.

What Is Product Liability Insurance?

Product liability can cover claims that a product you make, import, distribute or sell injured someone or damaged property. If your business handles products, describe every role in the supply chain and ask how the quote treats product damage and recall costs. Read the national Product liability guide.

What Should You Watch for With Product Liability Insurance in Ohio?

Map what your business did with each product
A supplier is generally liable for compensatory damages only if it was negligent and caused the harm, or its own representation failed to match the product and caused the harm. A supplier can be treated as the manufacturer when, among other listed conditions, it controls or owns the manufacturer, supplied the design, altered or defectively maintained the product, marketed it under its own label, or the manufacturer cannot be served or a judgment cannot be enforced. Keep distribution, private-label, design, repair, and manufacturer records. ¹
Respond promptly to written manufacturer requests
Ohio includes a supplier’s failure to respond timely and reasonably to a claimant’s written request for the manufacturer’s name and address among the circumstances that can expose the supplier to manufacturer-level liability. Maintain traceability records and a process to route and answer such requests after a claim. ¹
Calendar the ordinary two-year period from the injury event
For ordinary product-liability claims, Ohio provides two years after accrual and generally says accrual occurs when injury or property loss occurs. The statute sets discovery-based accrual for defined exposure categories, so do not substitute one general discovery rule for the statutory category-specific provisions. ²
Record first delivery and review warranty and exposure exceptions
The ten-year outside limit generally runs from delivery to the first purchaser or lessee outside a business using the product as a component in another product. The statute has exceptions for contributing fraud, an unexpired written safety warranty longer than ten years, a claim accruing less than two years before the period ends, disability, asbestos, and specified exposure claims. Keep dated delivery and warranty records and have counsel classify any exposure claim. ²

Which Product Liability Insurance Providers Have Ohio License Records?

These providers publish a national listing for Product liability; the license records below name the licensed entities and roles. Some records rely on company-reported information rather than independent regulator verification. A national listing does not confirm the product is available in Ohio. Check the regulator’s license lookup and confirm state availability for your business when requesting a quote.

Vouch
Insurance producer, Surplus-lines broker · checked 2026-09-28
Vouch Specialty Insurance Services, LLC
Vouch’s licenses page, effective January 16, 2025, lists producer licenses in all 50 states and DC. Its separate surplus-lines table includes Idaho number 870820, while a footnote says Georgia and Idaho do not issue agency-level surplus-lines licenses. Because those statements conflict for Idaho, this record keeps Idaho producer-only and does not treat the table number as established agency surplus-lines authority. The page is company-reported and does not establish product availability. ¹⁶
Vouch lists product liability among the core coverages in its technology-company programs.

Who Regulates Insurance in Ohio?

Ohio Department of Insurance

ODI licenses insurance agents and agencies and provides a public agent and company locator. Its consumer complaint form accepts insurance complaints and lets you identify an agent or company. ^3,^4,⁵

Website: Regulator website
License lookup: Search licensed producers
Complaints: File a complaint

Surplus-Lines Tax and Stamping Office in Ohio

Reported tax rate. 5% of gross premium, net of return premiums ^6,^7,⁸

For Ohio-home-state surplus-lines placements, Ohio sets a 5% tax on gross premiums after returned premiums and requires the surplus-lines broker to collect it when the policy is delivered. A diligent search usually applies; a qualifying exempt commercial purchaser may request nonadmitted placement in writing after disclosure that authorized-market coverage may offer greater protection, and the policy requires a signed notice of no Ohio guaranty-association benefits.

What Should You Ask Before Buying Product Liability Insurance in Ohio?

Can we identify each manufacturer and the first non-component-business purchaser or lessee delivery date for products we supply?
Who owns written requests for manufacturer identity, and how will we document a timely response?
Which products are private-labeled, altered, repaired, or designed by our business or an affiliated entity?
Do our written product warranties make any safety promise for more than ten years, and where are those terms retained?

Product Liability Insurance in Ohio: Frequently Asked Questions

Can an Ohio distributor be treated as a manufacturer?

Yes, in the conditions listed in Ohio Revised Code § 2307.78(B), including certain ownership, design, alteration, private-label, manufacturer-jurisdiction, insolvency, and failure-to-answer manufacturer-identity circumstances. The statute’s ordinary supplier test is otherwise based on supplier negligence or a nonconforming supplier representation. ¹

Does Ohio’s ten-year rule always bar claims after ten years?

No. The statute contains multiple exceptions, including some fraud, longer written safety warranty, late-accruing, disability, asbestos, and specified exposure claims. The start date also depends on delivery to the statutory first purchaser or lessee, so counsel should review product-chain facts. ²

Sources for Product Liability Insurance in Ohio

1
Ohio Revised Code § 2307.78 — Liability of Supplier. Ohio Legislative Service Commission; Current codification, § 2307.78(A)–(B): ordinary supplier liability and eight circumstances for treating a supplier as manufacturer, including missed written manufacturer-identity request. Page identifies effective date July 6, 2001 and latest legislation; accessed 2026-09-28. Accessed 2026-09-28.
2
Ohio Revised Code § 2305.10 — Product Liability Claims; Bodily Injury or Property Damage. Ohio Legislative Service Commission; Current codification, § 2305.10(A)–(G): two-year accrual rule; ten-year limit from qualifying first delivery; fraud, written safety warranty, late accrual, disability, asbestos, specified exposure and transition provisions. Page identifies currently available section version; accessed 2026-09-28. Accessed 2026-09-28.
3
ohio insurance regulator. State insurance regulator; Official regulator home page and consumer/industry navigation. Accessed 2026-09-28.
4
Ohio Department of Insurance Agent / Agency Locator. State insurance regulator; Public search fields for agent and agency name, NPN, license number, city, ZIP, residency, and license type. Accessed 2026-09-28.
5
Ohio Department of Insurance Consumer Complaints Form. State insurance regulator; Online complaint form collects insurer, coverage, agent, issue, and supporting documents; page warns submissions may be public records. Accessed 2026-09-28.
6
Ohio Revised Code §3905.36. Ohio Laws; Division (B): 5% of gross premiums after return premiums; surplus-lines broker collects from insured at policy delivery. Accessed 2026-09-28.
7
Ohio Revised Code §3905.38. Ohio Laws; Division A: Chapter 3905 rules do not apply when Ohio is not insured's home state. Accessed 2026-09-28.
8
Ohio Revised Code §3905.33. Ohio Laws; Divisions (B)(1), (B)(4): five-market diligence and ECP disclosure/written request; division (C): signed notice of no Ohio Insurance Guaranty Association benefits. Accessed 2026-09-28.
9
Licenses. At-Bay; Current producer introduction and state table; At-Bay Insurance Services LLC; P&C and surplus-lines identifiers. Accessed 2026-09-21.
10
Licenses and Carriers. Coalition; Licenses and Carriers, re-read 22 September 2026: Insurance Licenses table for Coalition Insurance Solutions, Inc., national producer number 18419475, with producer and surplus-lines numbers for all 50 states and DC including California 0L76155, Georgia 196479, Texas 2199630 and 2205589, Pennsylvania 815731 and 817452, Colorado 539028 and Wisconsin 3000108852. Insurance Carriers table naming, with NAIC numbers, Allianz Underwriters Insurance Company 36420, Arch Specialty Insurance Company 21199, Ascot Specialty Insurance Company 45055, Ascot Insurance Company 23752, Aspen Specialty Insurance Company 10717, Chaucer Insurance Company DAC, Coalition Insurance Company 29530, Fireman's Fund Indemnity Corporation 11380, Fortegra Specialty Insurance Company 16823, Lloyd's of London, MSIG Specialty Insurance USA Inc. 34886, MS Transverse Specialty Insurance Company 41807, Steadfast Insurance Company 26387, Vantage Risk Specialty Insurance Company 16275 and Zurich American Insurance Company 16535. Accessed 2026-09-22.
11
Insurance Producer Licenses. Corgi Insurance; Current complete Insurance Producer Licenses table for Corgi Insurance Services, Inc.; 50 rows covering 49 states and DC (DC 3003091619); no New Mexico row; no NPN or as-of date shown. Accessed 2026-09-28.
12
About Hiscox US Insurance. Hiscox; Hiscox Insurance Company Inc. NAIC 10200 as Chicago, IL domiciled insurer admitted or licensed in all 50 states and D.C.; Hiscox Inc. as general agent and Lloyd’s coverholder for Syndicates 33 and 3624; surplus-lines placements through licensed surplus-lines brokers; A.M. Best rating statement. Accessed 2026-09-16.
13
Licenses. ERGO NEXT Insurance; Current entity-by-state license table reopened 28 September 2026: 50 rows under Next First Insurance Agency, Inc., including Washington, DC; New York rows instead list Next Insurance Services PC-1423070 and AP Intego BR-1198885. Accessed 2026-09-28.
14
About Risklytics. Risklytics; What we do; Who we insure; Licensing; Agency licenses table dated 2026-09-10. Accessed 2026-09-16.
15
Insurance Licenses by State. TechInsurance; Current state table; identifies TechInsurance as a division of Specialty Program Group LLC d/b/a SPG Insurance Solutions; lists DC 3000041536 and labels Rhode Island “Individual licenses,” without an agency license number. Accessed 2026-09-28.
16
Licenses. Vouch; Effective 16 January 2025: Vouch Specialty Insurance Services, LLC, NPN 19926463; P&C table (50 states and DC); surplus-lines table includes Idaho 870820; footnote says Georgia and Idaho do not issue agency-level surplus-lines licenses; Idaho retained as producer-only due to conflict. Accessed 2026-09-15.

Product Liability in Ohio

What Is Product Liability Insurance?

What Should You Watch for With Product Liability Insurance in Ohio?

Map what your business did with each product

Respond promptly to written manufacturer requests

Calendar the ordinary two-year period from the injury event

Record first delivery and review warranty and exposure exceptions