The Hartford Financial Services Group has unveiled a new productthat is designed to protect small and midsize employers in theservice industry from lawsuits. The insurer has just introduced TheHartford Professional Choice Liability Policy, which is aimed atprotecting employees and their employers who are involved in thebusiness services industry. The policy would cover marketresearchers, loss control specialists, franchisors, and contentmanagers. Also covered would be advertising and public relationsfirms and third party administrators.

The professional liability insurance, commonly referred to asE&O coverage, protects professionals from liability in caseswhere a professional's action has resulted in financial damages toa client. Hartford Financial Products Assistant Vice PresidentSteve Prymas says the policy will help protect employers thattypically have gone without the coverage.

“No longer is professional liability litigation limited to largecompanies. A growing number of mid-size and smaller businessservices firms are on the receiving end of lawsuits related to thework they do,” said Prymas in a statement announcing the newproduct. “Our research shows that 48 percent of these firms have noprofessional liability coverage, often believing they are too smallto need it or that they can't afford it. Others mistakenly thinkprofessional liability is covered somewhere in their regularbusiness policy.”

The policy offers a number of protections for businessesincluding the following:

- Coverage for personal injury, such as libel and slander

- Coverage for punitive damages where allowed by law

- Coverage that automatically extends to companies acquired bythe insured

- Coverage extension for expenses for disciplinary proceedingsin which a professional is brought before a regulatory body orassociation

- Coverage that cannot be cancelled by the insurer except fornon-payment of premiums

- Affordable minimum premiums and minimum self-insuredretentions. Retentions refer to the amount of money a policyholdermust pay for covered damages and/or claim expenses in connectionswith each covered even before the insurer begins to pay.

One point that The Hartford is touting is that the policy isbeing marketed as a standard insurance policy written by an“admitted” company. According to the company, this saves customersthe expense of paying any surplus lines taxes and provides theprotection of state insurance regulation. “Sophisticated clientsoften require the service firms they work with to obtainprofessional liability coverage from a highly-rated insurancecompany,” said Prymas. “The Hartford's A+ rating and state of theart coverage satisfies these demands.”

To find out more about the product, call Patricia Fitzgerald at(212) 277-0457 or see the The Harford's web site atwww.hfpinsurance.com.