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Protect your business from discrimination, harassment, and wrongful termination claims with Lockton’s Employment Practices Liability Insurance and expert claims advocacy.
Confidence in every employment decision
Workforce dynamics are constantly evolving — and so are the risks for employers. When employment practices liability claims arise, they strike at the heart of your business, impacting your people, productivity, and reputation. Enterprising plaintiff’s counsel, media attention, and a constantly shifting legal and regulatory landscape mean that even the most well-intentioned employers can quickly — and publicly — come under scrutiny. EPL insurance offers a strong layer of protection, by providing meaningful coverage for the often-significant costs associated with claims of workplace misconduct. As your risk advisor, Lockton can help you design an EPL insurance program that will insulate your bottom line from employment risks, allowing you to get back to business.
What is EPL insurance?
EPL insurance protects your organization from the financial exposure of a variety of workplace liability risks, such as discrimination, harassment (whether sexual or not), retaliation, wrongful termination, constructive discharge, and invasion or breach of privacy, to name a few. In today’s workplace environment, all businesses face heightened scrutiny, complex regulations, and the potential for costly disputes with current and former employees, applicants, and volunteers. EPL insurance covers legal defense costs, settlements, and judgments — regardless of whether your business is found liable. This essential protection partners your organization with experienced insurance carriers who can provide risk management tools to help prevent claims in the first instance, allowing your leadership to confidently manage workforce challenges and maintain focus on growing your business.
Who should purchase EPL insurance?
Any organization that engages people for hire—regardless of size, industry, location, union participation, or utilization of independent contractors—faces employment-related risks and should consider EPL insurance. With a more dynamic business environment, a workforce increasingly aware of their rights, and constantly evolving federal, state, and local employment laws, the rising frequency, complexity and cost of employment-related claims makes EPL insurance an essential consideration for every business.
Claims management
Claims performance is the true measure of any EPL insurance program. Lockton’s Professional & Executive Risk claims team is purposefully structured to help you maximize your EPL insurance recoveries. Lockton does not silo claims, nor do we treat claims advocacy services as a profit center. Instead, we integrate experienced insurance and claims counsel within your broking team. This ensures that claims strategy and advocacy begin at the very start of our partnership with you, so when an EPL insurance claim does arise, we’re fully prepared.
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Learn how we help protect your business from employment claims by downloading our EPL insurance flyer.
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EPL insurance FAQs
What can I expect in a typical EPL insurance policy?
At Lockton, every EPL insurance policy is tailored to your business, by taking into account your industry, location, size, and operations. Although coverage is customized, a typical EPL policy will include coverage for:
Legal defense costs for claims brought by or on behalf of employees.
Legal defense costs incurred from responding to official employment investigations.
Third-party liability, for claims of discrimination or harassment brought by non-employees.
Punitive damages where insurable. Protection for mental or emotional distress claims.
Immigration-related employment claims.
What is Wage and Hour coverage?
Claims for violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and similar state wage and hour laws have grown significantly over the past 15 years, surpassing traditional EPL claims in frequency. Wage and hour insurance can protect your business from the financial loss associated with allegations of:
Misclassifying employees, as exempt versus non-exempt, or as independent contractors versus employees.
Failing to pay overtime or minimum wages.
Not compensating for donning and doffing, booting up and logging-off, and other off-the-clock work.
Non-compliance with meal and rest break period rules.
Inaccurate or incomplete pay statements.
Wage and hour claims are typically excluded by most EPL policies, although some EPL carriers will offer a defense-expense only sublimit in certain instances. Separate “standalone” wage and hour coverage, which provides financial protection and support for managing complex wage and hour disputes by reimbursing for defense costs and any indemnity (including unpaid wages), is available as a separate purchase.
Get the latest insights on buying wage and hour insurance in our market update here.