What is Surplus Lines?

Due to the unique needs of our clients, we write policies with Excess & Surplus Lines / Non-Admitted Carriers.

The excess and surplus lines, or non-admitted market is comprised of property and casualty companies that provide insurance that is unavailable to businesses in the standard or admitted market due to the unique characteristics and needs of the consumers. Much of the business generally accepted by surplus lines insurers includes specialty, complex, and high-capacity risks. The type of policies generally written by surplus lines insurers include director's and officer's liability, errors and omissions, special events coverage liability, product liability coverage, pollution damage liability, employment practices liability, catastrophe property risks, and excess and umbrella coverage.

Surplus Lines carriers are known as non-admitted writers because they are not offering coverage through the standard market overseen by that state's Department of Insurance.  There is no requirement to be licensed to underwrite coverage in the Excess & Surplus Lines marketplace.  It is designed to be a more open marketplace specifically for harder-to-place, large, or exceptionally small premiums or risks.  They accept business from licensed surplus lines brokers who themselves are more experienced professionals dealing with harder-to-place lines of coverage. All U.S. jurisdictions have surplus lines laws that serve to protect insurance consumers by controlling the eligibility and financial standards of surplus carriers and requiring specially trained brokers and agents to assist consumers.

A.M. Best's annual studies have validated that the surplus lines market maintains financial performance and solvency rates that are on par with or sometimes even better than the admitted market.

It is important to note that these insurers are generally able to obtain a license in your state, but choose to operate on an unlicensed, surplus line basis in order to meet the needs of the client.