Employment Practices Liability Insurance for Design Professionals-

Also commonly referred to as EPLI, this is a policy that most Design Professionals don’t think about but may have a need for the coverage.

What does EPLI do? – It is coverage provided for claims against your firm brought by employees or applications for employment for employment related allegations.

Why does my firm need it? – the policy covers for events such as suits arising out of discrimination, libel and slander, invasion of privacy, negligence hiring, supervision, retention, wrongful termination, workplace harassment and employment practices, policies and procedures.  About 25% of private companies had an EPL event in the last three years and an average total cost of $70,267.

What is the coverage? – This will vary with each insurance company but generally speaking the policy covers defense costs and the settlement, if there is indeed a settlement.  The defense costs alone can be large amount and in some cases there may not be a settlement in the end.

Other items to note – this is a claims made policy – the policy that is in place at the time of the claim is the policy that will pay.  Also, that means there will be a retroactive date or knowledge date on the policy.

Endorsements to be aware of – breach of contract included, third party claims coverage, immigration coverage, defense outside limits, tenant discrimination, employee privacy, and workplace violence?  These are some of the additional endorsements to ask the insurance company about.

There are many benefits to the EPLI policy that will protect your firm in the case of an employment related claim. An application will be required for pricing, please call or email your PUI Agent to obtain an application and refer to the applications section of our website.