---
title: "How Reliable Is Founder Shield?"
description: "Founder Shield reliability: licensing, legal entities, financial evidence and the scope behind its Spot Score."
canonical: "https://spot.insure/insurance-providers/foundershield/reliability"
page-type: "reliability-article"
updated-at: "2026-09-22"
verified-at: "2026-09-22"
entities: ["Spot"]
---

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[Human-readable page](https://spot.insure/insurance-providers/foundershield/reliability)

# How Reliable Is Founder Shield?

Founder Shield reliability: licensing, legal entities, financial evidence and the scope behind its Spot Score.

## Assessment

- **Role:** Broker

- **Scope:** Foundershield LLC/Founder Shield brokerage activity and the separate The Baldwin Group Specialty Solutions, LLC entity named by the website terms. No insurer, carrier solvency or policy-specific issuer is assigned to the brokerage.

This partial Broker Spot Score covers regulatory conduct, disclosure clarity within the stated scope. It uses 40% of the rubric’s factor weighting, normalized to a ten-point scale. The excluded factors remain unknown, and evidence for one program does not describe another.

- **Broker Spot Score:** **5.3/10**
- **Role:** Broker
- **Scope:** Foundershield LLC/Founder Shield brokerage activity and the separate The Baldwin Group Specialty Solutions, LLC entity named by the website terms. No insurer, carrier solvency or policy-specific issuer is assigned to the brokerage.
- **Assessed:** 2026-09-22
- **Review due:** 2026-10-22
- **Factor basis:** Partial score; **40%** of this role’s weighting included. Included: Regulatory Conduct, Disclosure Clarity. Excluded: Identity and Authority: Current authority and applicable appointments or delegations have not been independently established across the assessed scope.; Carrier-Network Strength: The reviewed evidence does not name the carrier and capacity arrangements behind the assessed programs, so the relationships cannot be assessed..

- **Methodology:** [How we calculate the Spot Score](/spot-rating)

- **Provider profile:** [Founder Shield](/insurance-providers/foundershield)

## Entities and roles

| Entity | Role | Sources |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Foundershield LLC | Broker named in current terms and New York DFS action | [Terms of Service](https://foundershield.com/terms-of-service/), [NYSDFS Takes Disciplinary Actions Against Licensees](https://www.dfs.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2025/08/da20250821.pdf) |
| The Baldwin Group Specialty Solutions, LLC | Entity named in website agreement and listed in Baldwin subsidiary records; exact contracting producer for a buyer requires confirmation | [Terms of Service](https://foundershield.com/terms-of-service/), [List of Subsidiaries as of February 26, 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1781755/000178175526000018/exhibit-211fy2025q4.htm) |

## Research summary

Founder Shield’s current terms describe Foundershield LLC as a licensed independent insurance broker and expressly say it is not an insurance company. The same terms name The Baldwin Group in the agreement and disclose partner-program compensation and placement arrangements. New York DFS’s August 2025 action lists Foundershield LLC as an agent, broker and excess-line broker and records a $36,600 fine for late excess-line filings for 2019–2023; the action concerns that filing conduct and does not establish current authority. [Terms of Service](https://foundershield.com/terms-of-service/), [NYSDFS Takes Disciplinary Actions Against Licensees](https://www.dfs.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2025/08/da20250821.pdf), [Claims](https://foundershield.com/claims/)

### Legal Identity

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. [Terms of Service](https://foundershield.com/terms-of-service/), [List of Subsidiaries as of February 26, 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1781755/000178175526000018/exhibit-211fy2025q4.htm)

### Licensing

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. [NYSDFS Takes Disciplinary Actions Against Licensees](https://www.dfs.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2025/08/da20250821.pdf), [Terms of Service](https://foundershield.com/terms-of-service/)

### Financial Strength

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. [List of Subsidiaries as of February 26, 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1781755/000178175526000018/exhibit-211fy2025q4.htm), [Terms of Service](https://foundershield.com/terms-of-service/)

### Risk-Bearing Relationships

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. [How Do You Decide Which Carriers to Approach?](https://foundershield.com/insurance-faqs/general-faqs/how-do-you-decide-which-carriers-to-approach/)

In the two state registers Spot 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. [Texas Firm Consumer Inquiry - FOUNDERSHIELD LLC](https://www.sircon.com/ComplianceExpress/Inquiry/consumerInquiry.do?nonSscrb=Y), [Pennsylvania Firm Consumer Inquiry - FOUNDERSHIELD LLC](https://www.sircon.com/ComplianceExpress/Inquiry/consumerInquiry.do?nonSscrb=Y)

That is consistent with the brand’s own terms, which name The Baldwin Group Specialty Solutions, LLC as the contracting party, but no record Spot reviewed establishes which entity now holds the appointments behind a Founder Shield placement or which carriers those are. Spot 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. [Texas Firm Consumer Inquiry - FOUNDERSHIELD LLC](https://www.sircon.com/ComplianceExpress/Inquiry/consumerInquiry.do?nonSscrb=Y), [Pennsylvania Firm Consumer Inquiry - FOUNDERSHIELD LLC](https://www.sircon.com/ComplianceExpress/Inquiry/consumerInquiry.do?nonSscrb=Y), [Terms of Service](https://foundershield.com/terms-of-service/)

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. [Startup Insurance](https://foundershield.com/startup-insurance/), [How Do You Decide Which Carriers to Approach?](https://foundershield.com/insurance-faqs/general-faqs/how-do-you-decide-which-carriers-to-approach/), [Partner Marketplace](https://foundershield.com/partners/)

### Claims and Service

Founder Shield provides a 24/7 claim-reporting route and explains that the carrier’s claims professional investigates coverage and manages the claim. This documents brokerage access and process guidance, not independent claims performance. [Claims](https://foundershield.com/claims/)

### Regulatory Record

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. [NYSDFS Takes Disciplinary Actions Against Licensees](https://www.dfs.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2025/08/da20250821.pdf)

## Licenses and authority

No license records are included in this assessment.

## Jurisdiction searches

| Jurisdiction | Result | Notes | Sources |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| NY | Verified | The August 2025 NYDFS action identifies Foundershield LLC, its broker roles, fine and conduct period. This is conduct evidence, not a current license lookup. | [NYSDFS Takes Disciplinary Actions Against Licensees](https://www.dfs.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2025/08/da20250821.pdf) |
| US/DC | Not researched | No completed five-year conduct result is established for the stated scope. | [Terms of Service](https://foundershield.com/terms-of-service/) |

## Rating dimensions

### Broker Spot Score

Included weighting: **40%** of the original dimensions. Contributions are normalized over included weighting. Excluded factors:
- **Identity and Authority:** Current authority and applicable appointments or delegations have not been independently established across the assessed scope. [Terms of Service](https://foundershield.com/terms-of-service/), [List of Subsidiaries as of February 26, 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1781755/000178175526000018/exhibit-211fy2025q4.htm), [NYSDFS Takes Disciplinary Actions Against Licensees](https://www.dfs.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2025/08/da20250821.pdf)
- **Carrier-Network Strength:** The reviewed evidence does not name the carrier and capacity arrangements behind the assessed programs, so the relationships cannot be assessed. [How Do You Decide Which Carriers to Approach?](https://foundershield.com/insurance-faqs/general-faqs/how-do-you-decide-which-carriers-to-approach/), [Startup Insurance](https://foundershield.com/startup-insurance/), [Partner Marketplace](https://foundershield.com/partners/), [List of Subsidiaries as of February 26, 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1781755/000178175526000018/exhibit-211fy2025q4.htm)
| Dimension | Score (0–4) | Weight | Contribution (/10) | Sources |
| --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | --- |
| Regulatory Conduct | 2.18 | 25% | 3.41 | [NYSDFS Takes Disciplinary Actions Against Licensees](https://www.dfs.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2025/08/da20250821.pdf) |
| Disclosure Clarity | 2.01 | 15% | 1.88 | [Terms of Service](https://foundershield.com/terms-of-service/), [List of Subsidiaries as of February 26, 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1781755/000178175526000018/exhibit-211fy2025q4.htm), [NYSDFS Takes Disciplinary Actions Against Licensees](https://www.dfs.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2025/08/da20250821.pdf), [How Do You Decide Which Carriers to Approach?](https://foundershield.com/insurance-faqs/general-faqs/how-do-you-decide-which-carriers-to-approach/), [Startup Insurance](https://foundershield.com/startup-insurance/), [Partner Marketplace](https://foundershield.com/partners/), [Claims](https://foundershield.com/claims/) |

## Evidence gaps

- Current license identifiers and status for Foundershield LLC were not independently established in this record.
- The exact relationship and contracting role between Foundershield LLC and The Baldwin Group Specialty Solutions, LLC needs engagement-specific confirmation.
- Carrier, program, quota-share and reinsurance allocation is not established for a generic placement.
- The scope, remediation and current compliance status following the 2025 New York consent order require follow-up.
- Texas and Pennsylvania both show Foundershield LLC’s agency licences Inactive since 2023 with every listed appointment terminated; which entity holds the current appointments behind a Founder Shield placement, and which carriers they are, is not established.
- Appointment evidence was retrieved in Texas and Pennsylvania only; the other states were not checked and no conclusion about them follows.

## Related terms

- [What Is an Insurance Broker?](/insurance-glossary/insurance-broker)
- [What Is an Insurance Producer License?](/insurance-glossary/insurance-producer-license)
- [What Is a National Producer Number?](/insurance-glossary/national-producer-number)
- [What Is an AM Best Rating?](/insurance-glossary/am-best-rating)

## Sources

- [List of Subsidiaries as of February 26, 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1781755/000178175526000018/exhibit-211fy2025q4.htm) — The Baldwin Insurance Group, Inc.; 2025 Form 10-K Exhibit 21.1 subsidiary list including The Baldwin Group Specialty Solutions, LLC; accessed 2026-09-22.
- [How Do You Decide Which Carriers to Approach?](https://foundershield.com/insurance-faqs/general-faqs/how-do-you-decide-which-carriers-to-approach/) — Founder Shield; Carrier-selection FAQ and market-access explanation; accessed 2026-09-22.
- [Claims](https://foundershield.com/claims/) — Founder Shield; 24/7 claim reporting, carrier claims professional and claims-management explanation; accessed 2026-09-21.
- [NYSDFS Takes Disciplinary Actions Against Licensees](https://www.dfs.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2025/08/da20250821.pdf) — New York Department of Financial Services; August 21, 2025 action, pages 5–6: Foundershield LLC, agent/broker/excess-line broker, $36,600 fine; late excess-line filings January 2019–March 2023; accessed 2026-09-21.
- [Terms of Service](https://foundershield.com/terms-of-service/) — Founder Shield; Last Updated 1.25.2022; License Status; broker/non-insurer statement; Baldwin Group partner-arrangement and compensation disclosures.; accessed 2026-09-21.
- [Startup Insurance](https://foundershield.com/startup-insurance/) — Founder Shield; Startup coverage section: “customized policies from a diverse range of over 200+ carriers”. No carrier is named on the page.; accessed 2026-09-22.
- [Partner Marketplace](https://foundershield.com/partners/) — Founder Shield; Partner marketplace listing partners by category (financial, fundraising, growth, HR, legal, productivity, security); every entry is a software, capital, legal or security vendor and no insurer, wholesale broker or program administrator appears.; accessed 2026-09-22.
- [Texas Firm Consumer Inquiry - FOUNDERSHIELD LLC](https://www.sircon.com/ComplianceExpress/Inquiry/consumerInquiry.do?nonSscrb=Y) — Sircon/Texas insurance licensing lookup; Firm Consumer Inquiry for the State of Texas, retrieved 22 September 2026: licensee FOUNDERSHIELD LLC, NPN 16892313. Licences: Surplus Lines Agency licence 2193943, Status Inactive, original issue 06-07-2017, effective 04-06-2023, expiration 08-13-2024; General Lines Agency licence 1934316, Status Inactive, original issue 08-13-2014, effective 04-06-2023, expiration 08-13-2024. Qualifications: Property and Casualty Inactive (effective 04-06-2023); Life, Acc., Health & HMO Inactive (effective 04-06-2023). Affiliations/Appointments lists 58 companies and every appointment row is Inactive/terminated; none is Active. Terminated appointments include Ace Fire Underwriters Insurance Company, Ace Property and Casualty Insurance Company, AIG PROPERTY CASUALTY COMPANY, Allied World Insurance Company, Allmerica Financial Alliance Insurance Company, Allmerica Financial Benefit Insurance Company, American Alternative Insurance Corporation, AMERICAN CASUALTY COMPANY OF READING, PENNSYLVANIA, CHARTER OAK FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY, THE, Citizens Insurance Company of America, Commerce and Industry Insurance Company, Continental Casualty Company and 46 more.; accessed 2026-09-22.
- [Pennsylvania Firm Consumer Inquiry - FOUNDERSHIELD LLC](https://www.sircon.com/ComplianceExpress/Inquiry/consumerInquiry.do?nonSscrb=Y) — Sircon/Pennsylvania insurance licensing lookup; Firm Consumer Inquiry for the State of Pennsylvania, retrieved 22 September 2026: licensee FOUNDERSHIELD LLC, NPN 16892313. Licences: Non-Resident Producer Agency licence 705946, Status Inactive, original issue 07-29-2014, effective 06-30-2023, expiration 07-29-2024; Non-Resident Surplus Lines licence 867201, Status Inactive, original issue 09-20-2018, effective 06-30-2023, expiration 09-30-2024. Qualifications: Life and Fixed Annuities Inactive (effective 06-30-2023); Property and Allied Lines Inactive (effective 06-30-2023); Accident and Health Inactive (effective 06-30-2023); Casualty and Allied Lines Inactive (effective 06-30-2023); Property and Casualty Inactive (effective 06-30-2023). Affiliations/Appointments lists 62 companies and every appointment row is Inactive/terminated; none is Active. Terminated appointments include ACE AMERICAN INSURANCE COMPANY, ACE FIRE UNDERWRITERS INSURANCE COMPANY, ACE PROPERTY AND CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY, AIG PROPERTY CASUALTY COMPANY, ALLIED WORLD INSURANCE COMPANY, ALLMERICA FINANCIAL ALLIANCE INSURANCE COMPANY, ALLMERICA FINANCIAL BENEFIT INSURANCE COMPANY, AMERICAN ALTERNATIVE INSURANCE CORPORATION, AMERICAN CASUALTY COMPANY OF READING, PENNSYLVANIA, BANKERS STANDARD INSURANCE COMPANY, CHARTER OAK FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY (THE), CHUBB INDEMNITY INSURANCE COMPANY and 50 more.; accessed 2026-09-22.

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