This article was produced in partnership with Travelers Europe.
Mia Wallace, of Insurance Business, sat down with Donna Hurst, director of professional indemnity at Travelers Europe, to discuss what’s happening in the solicitors’ PI market.
When it comes to pricing, coverage and market exits in the professional indemnity (PI) insurance market, it’s fair to say that recent years have been quite a rollercoaster journey. But one positive to emerge from the turbulence is that it’s cemented the importance of creating a sustainable PI marketplace – backed by long-term, financially-secure providers with an eye to the future.
Zeroing in on the solicitors’ PI market, Donna Hurst (pictured), director of professional indemnity at Travelers Europe, noted that Travelers has been one of the leading insurers of solicitors in England and Wales since 2000. As a result, she said, the business has a wealth of claims data that helps to inform its underwriting and risk selection.
“We employ risk managers who work closely with both our claim and underwriting teams to track claim trends and ensure that underwriters are informed,” she said, “as well as providing advice to clients by way of seminars, webinars, factsheets and bespoke training sessions. In addition, our claims team is made up of qualified solicitors who understand our clients’ businesses and use their expertise to work for the best outcomes for our clients.”
During her time in the market, Hurst has seen first-hand the difference that it makes to clients and brokers alike to have ready access to expert and experienced solicitors’ PI professionals. Travelers Europe has 15 underwriters in the solicitors’ team, she said, some of whom have been writing solicitors’ PI since 2000.
“We regularly meet with our key brokers to understand their needs as well as the constantly changing marketplace,” she said. “Our underwriters are available to attend meetings with existing and prospective clients which helps us to build a good knowledge of the kinds of challenges that law firms face.
“Our risk managers are qualified solicitors who have worked in private practice and are on hand to provide advice to our clients around risk. Our claim professionals have been called out for the invaluable help and support they provide to clients when facing the uncertainty that an allegation of negligence can bring to the practice. We want our clients to view us as partners who can provide advice and support to help them manage their business safely.”
Travelers Europe has a generous appetite for PI coverage, Hurst said, and the insurer is able to consider insurance for all SRA-regulated firms - from a sole practitioner to a multi-office global law firm. Its PI cover meets the requirements of the SRA’s Minimum Terms and Conditions, plus cover is included for liability arising from accidental damage to documents and court attendance compensation.
“While we continue to monitor our exposure to conveyancing across the book,” she said, “we have now raised our cap (previously 25%) and can consider sole practitioner firms with up to 40% conveyancing, and all firms with an income up to £4 million which can demonstrate excellent risk management procedures and claims experience, and which have been held by the same broker for at least three years.”
The key to being a sustainable, dependable presence in the solicitor’s PI marketplace is not resting on your laurels, but rather embracing the evolution required to keep pace with the ever-evolving legal environment. The legal landscape is forever changing, Hurst said, with emerging case law, regulatory changes and fluctuations in the economy among the factors affecting the risks and opportunities that law firms face.
“By monitoring changes on the horizon together with trends we are seeing on the claims side,” she said, “we are able to remain relevant to the legal industry and ensure that we are providing a product and service that meets the specific needs of every firm we insure.”
Exploring some of the key changes Travelers Europe has made to its solicitors’ PI proposition in order to keep up with the demands of its brokers and clients, Hurst highlighted that poor mental wellbeing has been a hot topic for the legal industry in recent years and has been shown to lead to an increase in errors. To that end, the insurer has launched a highly acclaimed ‘post-claim wellbeing’ service which offers professional support from a third-party provider to any individual involved in a claim.
“Last year, we launched a product specifically for freelance solicitors,” she said. “Since 2019, the SRA have allowed individual solicitors to offer reserved legal activities without setting up a regulated practice. This provides more flexibility around working practices and our new product is designed to reflect the diversity in this sector with premiums starting from £950 and no appetite restrictions to activities undertaken.”
Looking to what’s next for her and her team in 2023, Hurst emphasised the importance of continuing to monitor claims trends. This also involves undertaking analysis on claims arising from work undertaken during the pandemic, she said, in order to better understand how remote working and the pressures of the SDLT window impacted firms’ ability to undertake work safely.
“Following extensive research, we are working on a risk management portal for our insured firms,” she added. “This contains a number of articles to help our clients manage the risks their firms face on a daily basis. And we are continuing to work on making the buying of insurance less of a chore for our clients.
“As a result, we are now able to offer 18-month policies, subject to meeting certain criteria, enabling firms to concentrate on running their businesses without facing the headache of an insurance renewal every 12 months. In addition, we’re also working on ways to improve the renewals process for our smaller insured firms to reduce the time spent completing forms. All in all, it’s a busy, and very rewarding, time to be part of the Travelers’ PI team.”
The information provided in this document is for general information purposes only. It does not constitute legal or professional advice nor a recommendation to any individual or business of any product or service.”
