Ironshore Canada Launches PL Coverage for Private Equity Risks
IronPro, the professional and management liability unit of Ironshore Canada Ltd., has introduced a professional liability policy for Canadian-based private equity and venture capital firms to protect against portfolio investment risk exposures worldwide.
IronPro’s private equity liability insurance policy is a specialty product that provides coverage dedicated to private equity firms facing unforeseen risks arising from funds’ indemnity obligations. The product has been developed in response to potential gaps in insurance protection for diverse risk exposures within specialized investment funds managed by Canadian private equity firms. The broad-form, claims-made policy provides coverage for directors & officers, errors & omissions, employment practices liability insurance lines, and can include provisions for general liability risks. Policy limits are available for up to $15 million.
Litigation, regulatory investigations, and prosecutions in the Canadian marketplace have raised awareness of fund management obligations and exposure to a range of liability issues inherent in complex investment vehicles. The policy features protection for outside directorship liability, designed to protect executive exposure when assuming leadership positions on boards of fund investment entities worldwide.
The broad definition of a fund within IronPro’s private equity liability insurance product includes all funds listed in the application, including “forgotten funds,” as well as newly created or acquired funds when similar to existing, covered fund structures. Product coverage has less policy exclusions than comparable insurance plans, and does not have a restrictive professional liability trigger tied to professional services offered by the private equity fund on behalf of portfolio companies. IronPro’s product provides for 100 percent allocation of defense costs within the policy limit and does not exclude pollution liability risks.
Ironshore Canada Ltd., based in Toronto, is a subsidiary of Ironshore International Ltd. Ironshore Canada’s suite of products is underwritten for financial & professional lines, environmental, specialty casualty, and specialty property and marine.