What is surplus lines insurance? Most of our policies have a Surplus Disclaimer which states:
The undersigned understands that the insurance coverage provided by the above-described policy is written by an insurer that is not authorized (licensed) by the Alabama Department of Insurance and that the Department of Insurance does not have any authority over the policy forms used or the premiums charged by this insurance company. The undersigned insured further understands that no Alabama insurance guaranty fund protection exists in the event this insurance company becomes insolvent and that, in the event of insolvency, there is no guarantee a claim will be fully covered.
What is Surplus Lines Insurance?
Many times, this disclaimer is misunderstood to mean that the insurance provider is not legit and won’t pay claims. It actually means that the insurance provider does not participate in paying the guaranty fund of Alabama (or whatever state the insurance is provided in). Therefore, they are not licensed, nor do they have the authority, to take any money out of that fund to pay claims. The state guaranty fund is a pool of money that admitted carriers (such as ALFA, Farmers, State Farm, etc) pay money into, and therefore have access to IF they go bankrupt.
If you have insurance with an admitted carrier and that carrier goes bankrupt, the state of Alabama would use money from its guarantee fund to help pay your claim. If you have insurance with a non-admitted carrier that goes bankrupt, your claim may not be paid. In any event, it’s important to research the policy provider that you decide to use for coverage.
Lloyd’s – a Surplus Lines Organization
Lloyd’s of London, for example, is a surplus lines insurer that was established in 1775 (the oldest, most famous, and one of the richest insurers in the world). They are made up of 75 syndicates which are huge institutions individually but altogether they are more than impressive worldwide. Because they are an alien insurer, they have decided not to pay money into each of the states guarantee funds, and rightfully so! They own more money than many of the states they do business in!
Some smaller and less wealthy insurance providers who fall under the surplus lines category might go bankrupt if a massive hurricane came. Therefore the intention behind the surplus lines disclaimer is to warn the customer of this. It’s important to know the reputation of whoever you do business with. Never accept an insurance policy from anyone with less than an A rating. You can check insurance policy providers by Googling them or by searching sites like the Better Business Bureau.