Last month, ForeFront, Chubb’s new management liability solution for private companies went live in Ireland.
Damien Toal, Chubb’s Financial Lines Manager, explains the thinking behind it
and the benefits it offers brokers.
Business today is a complex, fast-moving world – particularly when there are so many uncertainties and pressures affecting the economy. So it’s timely that in October, Chubb began to roll out the latest version of ForeFront, our comprehensive product offering for management liabilities to which privately-owned small-to-medium (SME) sized businesses are exposed. ForeFront includes separate heads of cover for Directors and Officers (D&O), Corporate Legal Liability, Employment Practice Liability (EPL), Benefit Plan Liability, Kidnap and Extortion, Employee Crime and Cyber Liability.
Modular approach
Like its predecessors, ForeFront is modular in nature – it includes seven key towers of cover with D&O as the core element. As standard, a buyer receives an amount of cover from each module. For example, if a client purchases €1m of D&O cover through ForeFront, that buyer will also receive 50% of the available Company Legal Liability cover, €250,000 of EPL plus additional limits of €25,000 for other headings. Significantly, now the cover limits for D&O, EPL, corporate legal liability and Benefit Plan Liability are available on an Any One Claim basis; previously it was on an aggregate basis. This allows ForeFront clients to be confident in the level of protection they have under their Management Liability policy.
But ForeFront is not prescriptive. It provides the flexibility for clients to suit their needs by buying additional levels of cover where required. For example, if a client wants greater protection for their pension liability exposure than the standard offered, that cover can be purchased.
ForeFront has been tailored for private companies and now includes enhanced areas of coverage as standard.
ForeFront now includes cyber liability and incident response costs as a stand-alone head of cover. Previously no cover was
available as part of this solution; now we are able to offer up to a €25,000 limit with ForeFront as standard – more if a separate Cyber product is purchased. The growing exposure that SMEs are facing from both cyber criminals and non-criminal exposures in this area, makes this cyber protection a significant benefit to their management liability policy. In the 21st Century, every business is, to a greater or lesser extent, a technology business.
In addition, a limit of €25,000 for Employee Crime cover is now included, with specific coverage for Social Engineering Fraud, a risk that is impacting SMEs significantly.
Kidnap and Extortion is also increasingly relevant. As more companies have staff either based in different parts of the world or travelling internationally on business, the ability to offer them protection and assist them in mitigating these risks is vital.
Contacting brokers
ForeFront was available for new business from early October and for renewals from November. Brokers can access it in two ways: by visiting Chubb Online and logging in, or by contacting the team in Dublin directly. Either option will allow us to supply brokers with a quotation.
All our broker partners should by now have received a series of emails providing details. We will also be visiting brokers to give them a personal introduction to the product and we’re very happy to provide on-site product training and can offer CPD approved sessions, if required.
Behind the ForeFront product, Chubb’s Irish staff continue to offer the highest levels of service. Our six-strong team based in Dublin is able to write business both north and south of the border. Highly experienced in all aspects of the Irish market, we are committed to working with our broker partners over the long term. For example, we have written Financial Lines business for more than 15 years in Ireland, having gone through the highs and the lows of numerous insurance cycles. And because our team is empowered to make decisions, we can deal with our broker partner’s requests quickly and efficiently.
The new version of ForeFront will continue to be rolled out and improved as brokers give us their feedback and thoughts. We’re keen to hear these. Equally, if any brokers have questions or want to discuss ForeFront and its modules, contact me and the team in Dublin on forefront.ireland@chubb.com or 01 440 1726.
