Excess liability insurance

For self-insured public entities with predictable risks, purchasing excess liability insurance is not only practical – it’s responsible. Clients need to protect their budgets. Self-insured retentions give them more flexibility to do good.

Still, the risks are real. Hackers, contaminated water supplies, mass shootings and more – public entities face greater risks than ever before.

Threats are intensifying. Enhanced insurance protection is necessary.

Navigating a hard market

Ongoing hard market conditions have limited excess liability capacity for public entities. Social inflation is driving up costs. Court system awards – multi-million-dollar “nuclear verdicts” – continue to increase across the country.

This makes having a good wholesale broker even more important.

“The job of a wholesale broker is to be constantly on top of who’s prepared to do what,” said Mike Ward, a leader on the public entity team at RPS Signature Programs.

“It’s a tough time in the market for the buyer and the retailers. So, it’s a great time in the market for wholesale experts like RPS to provide service for finding the best available in the marketplace.”

Retailers are leaning on the wholesale brokerage industry more than ever for its expertise and market reach. On top of the close relationships they foster, the big premiums companies like RPS Signature Programs manage give them a decisive edge when it comes to navigating the ever-changing marketplace.

“The best thing for a buyer to do is every now and again, every three to five years, to put out a request for qualifications and have a beauty parade of retail insurance agents come in and tell them why they should have their business,” Ward shared. “Pick the best of the best and let them do their stuff so they can have complete access to the wholesale broker – or brokers – of choice and all the markets at their disposal.”

The bottom line

The public entity insurance industry does a good job of providing equitable solutions and paying claims. It’s a win-win for the industry and its clients – who love the control they hold when they self-insure and pay their own claims through third-party administrators.