Is Founder Shield Legit? Licensing, Carriers and Reliability

Founder Shield’s terms say Foundershield LLC is a licensed independent insurance broker and is not an insurance company. The agreement also names The Baldwin Group Specialty Solutions, LLC, while the Baldwin subsidiary filing confirms that entity’s place within the group; the contracting producer for a specific engagement still needs confirmation.^5,1

The New York DFS action identifies Foundershield LLC as an agent, broker and excess-line broker. Current license identifiers and active authority have not been independently established.^4,5

The cited materials provide group subsidiary and compensation disclosures but no Founder Shield operational financial statements or carrier-specific solvency evidence for a generic placement. The broker’s group relationship does not establish the financial strength of the insurer on a buyer’s policy.^1,5

Founder Shield describes approaching carrier partners based on appetite and internal selection criteria. That company description does not identify the issuer, capacity provider or applicable arrangement for a specific buyer; the quote and policy documents are required.²

In the two state registers we could reach, the licensed Foundershield entity shows a wound-down panel rather than a current one. Texas lists FOUNDERSHIELD LLC, NPN 16892313, with General Lines Agency licence 1934316 and Surplus Lines Agency licence 2193943 both Inactive since 6 April 2023 and expired 13 August 2024, and all 58 companies in its Affiliations/Appointments section carry terminated rows with no active appointment. Pennsylvania shows the same pattern: Non-Resident Producer Agency licence 705946 and Non-Resident Surplus Lines licence 867201 both Inactive since 30 June 2023, and none of the 62 companies listed holds an active appointment.^8,9

That is consistent with the brand’s own terms, which name The Baldwin Group Specialty Solutions, LLC as the contracting party, but no record we reviewed establishes which entity now holds the appointments behind a Founder Shield placement or which carriers those are. We checked two states only, so this is not a finding about the other forty-eight; it is a finding that for the entity the published terms, licence history and 2025 New York consent order attach to, the registers that could be read show terminated appointments.^8,9,5

The marketing has not followed the registers. The startup page still claims customized policies from a diverse range of over 200+ carriers and the carrier-selection FAQ says placements follow carrier appetite and that the firm works exclusively with carriers AM Best rates A- or better, while naming no insurer; the partner marketplace lists software, capital, legal and security vendors and no underwriting company. A rating tier and a carrier count are not a named relationship.^6,2,7

Founder Shield provides a 24/7 claim-reporting route and explains that the carrier’s claims professional investigates coverage and manages the claim. This describes brokerage access and process guidance, not independent claims performance.³

New York DFS approved a June 26, 2025 consent order imposing a $36,600 fine on Foundershield LLC for failing to timely file excess-line documents from January 2019 through March 2023. The record is specific to that New York excess-line filing conduct and period. It is not a current license-status finding and does not describe all Founder Shield operations.⁴