Other Casualty Coverages: Umbrella/Excess, Crime, and Specialty Liability
Umbrella versus excess
Excess liability follows the form of the underlying policy and pays only after underlying limits are exhausted. An umbrella is broader: it drops down to cover losses not insured by underlying policies, often subject to a self-insured retention. Remember that an SIR is paid by the insured and is not insurance; a deductible is subtracted from the loss, and the insurer still handles the claim.
Worked example: A $2,000,000 umbrella sits over a $1,000,000 CGL. A covered loss of $1,400,000 pays $1,000,000 from the CGL and $400,000 from the umbrella. For a loss excluded by the CGL but covered by the umbrella with a $10,000 SIR, the insured pays the first $10,000.
Crime coverage
Crime forms cover employee theft, forgery or alteration, theft of money and securities inside and outside the premises (safe burglary, robbery), computer fraud, and funds transfer fraud. Employee theft is a first-party commercial crime coverage; a fidelity bond is a guarantee of employee honesty, while a surety bond guarantees performance of an obligation. Crime policies generally exclude indirect or consequential loss and mysterious disappearance unless added.
Specialty liability lines
Directors and officers liability (management acts, often with a conduct exclusion), employment practices liability (wrongful termination, harassment), professional liability/E&O (negligent services, usually claims-made), fiduciary liability (ERISA plan breaches), cyber liability (data breach, privacy, network interruption), environmental (pollution, often claims-made with a retroactive date), liquor liability, and garage keepers coverage for customers' autos in the insured's care.
Traps
Questions confuse umbrella with excess, SIR with deductible, crime with CGL, and E&O with D&O. Read whether the form is occurrence or claims-made.