RENEW LAWYERS PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY INSURANCEFIVE ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE RIGHT NOW TO IMPROVE COVERAGE AND REDUCE THE COST OF YOUR LAWYERS PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY INSURANCE.
PLUS, TWO ADDITIONAL STEPS TO REDUCE THE TIME YOU SPEND RENEWING YOUR POLICY.
Do you spend more time than you want addressing the administrative issues of your practice? Matters that generate no billable hours, but if handled poorly could cost you thousands, maybe even millions of dollars? By taking these five simple steps, you can improve your understanding of your lawyers professional liability coverage and better protect your firm and your personal assets from the aggressive attorneys that troll the waters of legal professional liability.
First: Read your policy and ask questions. Keep in mind that your insurance policy is a contract and like any agreement, you make, you have obligations that you must adhere to as a condition of the policy. These conditions are usually very easy to comply with, but if you don’t know what they are, insurers can use them as pitfalls for denying coverage. Also, every insurer has their own policy language with slightly differing coverage provisions and exclusions. When reading the policy consider what it is covering and not covering and then ask your broker how this applies to your firm. Provisions to be most conscious of include predecessor firms coverage, extended reporting period options, the definition of covered services and the exclusions section.
Second: Analyze your exposure. Consider the types and scope of the legal services you provide. Are these services more likely to result in a frequency of claims or in a severity of claims? How large is your caseload? What are the dollar values you can assign to your largest cases? What is the average dollar value of your cases? Now compare your answers to your policy. Do your limits seem adequate enough to cover the most sever potential claim? What about your deductible? If your caseload type is such that you might have a frequency exposure, will you be able to pay your deductible more than once? Remember, professional liability claims sometimes have nothing to do legal errors.
Third: Review your most recent application. Experience has taught us that the first thing a claims adjustor will look at when you have a claim is your application. They will scrutinize the form for inconsistencies between your answers and claim you have submitted. If there is a chance that they can show that your application was misleading to the underwriter, they will make every effort to deny coverage (or at the very least, reserve their rights). When you complete your application, it is essential to make every effort to present your firm in the most accurate way, while still representing the information in a manner attractive to the underwriter.
Fourth: Create a culture of “Risk Awareness” in your firm. The absolute best way to keep premiums down is not to have claims. By educating yourself and your staff of the potential for a lawyers' malpractice claim you build an atmosphere of awareness to the problem. And, just like when you drive down a familiar road that you know has a dangerous turn, when you are aware of a problem, you are prepared to handle it.
Fifth: Work with a specialist professional liability insurance broker. Be aware, many brokers claim to be specialists, and they may even have a large number of lawyer clientele. But, do they have knowledge of how this complicated risk transfer mechanism works so they can provide you with the advice and service you need? Can they help you understand the provisions of your policy (its claims made nature); analyze your exposure; review your application; and educate you about loss prevention practices? The right broker doesn’t just get you a quote; they add value. If not, contact us today for a no obligation consultation.
Two additional steps - sign up for our free E-Newsletter (we never sell your e-mail address) and we will send you our e-book, “Understanding Professional Liability Insurance” a $9.95 value with no obligation to buy. These documents, loaded with information about how to avoid lawyers professional liability claims can help you begin the process of understanding and managing risk. Then add our blog, “Responsibility” to your RSS feed in Microsoft Outlook for ideas on how to incorporate the latest risk management techniques into your own practice.
