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E&O / professional liability (the Tech-E&O on-ramp)

This is the single most important coverage page for the Glacis strategy. Errors & Omissions is the family the Tech-E&O product belongs to. All STABLE unless noted.

Errors & Omissions (E&O) / professional liability covers financial loss caused by a professional’s negligent act, error, or omission in rendering professional services. It responds when a client alleges the professional’s work — advice, design, software, service — was deficient and caused them economic harm. STABLE

It is distinct from general liability:

  • CGL covers bodily injury / property damage (someone gets hurt or property is damaged).
  • E&O covers economic/financial loss from a professional failure (no physical injury required).
  1. The agency’s OWN E&O — the MGA/agency buys E&O to protect itself against claims that it gave negligent professional service (e.g., failed to place coverage, made an application error). Carriers often require their producers to carry it. STABLE
  2. The E&O product the MGA SELLS — the Tech-E&O-for-healthcare-AI policy Glacis would create and sell to its customers. GROUNDED · Glacis

Same coverage concept, opposite sides of the desk. The exam tests #1’s existence; the strategy is built on #2.

E&O is almost always written on a claims-made basis (contrast the occurrence trigger of CGL). The policy that responds is the one in force when the claim is made, not when the negligent act occurred. Two concepts make this work — and they are the tested points:

  • Retroactive date — coverage applies only to wrongful acts on or after this date. Acts before it aren’t covered. Maintaining an early, continuous retro date is how a professional preserves coverage for past work.
  • Tail coverage / Extended Reporting Period (ERP) — extends the window to report claims after the policy ends, for acts committed during the policy period. Critical when changing carriers or winding down, so a late claim isn’t orphaned.
wrongful act claim made reported must be ON/AFTER the RETRO DATE must be DURING the policy period (or within the ERP/tail)

Exam framing: “A Tech E&O policy responds under which trigger?” → Claims-made.

In E&O, defense costs are frequently inside the limits — every dollar of legal defense erodes the money left to settle the claim. This makes limit selection and the defense-cost structure a real underwriting and sales issue. See 00 Liability principles.

  • Prior knowledge / known claims — you can’t insure a problem you already knew about before the policy started.
  • Bodily injury / property damage — those belong in CGL, not E&O (cyber/Tech E&O blurs this — see 06 Tech E&O).
  • Fraud / intentional/dishonest acts — generally excluded.

The earlier Glacis strategy explored a healthcare-AI Tech E&O programme. Use that as a product-design example, not an existing policy or underwriting authorisation. Actual claims-made terms, cyber/E&O components, insured duties and coverage depend on the insurer’s wording and applicable law. GROUNDED · Glacis STABLE

Scoped runtime evidence may support an underwriting or claims review. It does not automatically justify rating credits, establish lower losses or create profit share. See healthcare-AI underwriting questions and rating and pricing.

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