Employment Practices Liability Insurance
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Article: Why You Need Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI)Employment Practices Liability Insurance
From the moment that you start the pre-hiring process until the exit interview, you are vulnerable to an employment-related lawsuit. As a result, your business should take a hard look at whether it can afford to defend itself against alleged wrongful employment practices accusations. If not, there is an insurance solution called employment practices liability that protects against wrongful termination, discrimination or sexual harassment suits from your current, prospective or former employees. This coverage applies to directors, officers and employees, and can sometimes extend to third party liabilities.
Why Choose Employment Practices Liability Insurance?
According to researchers, three out of five employers will be sued by a prospective, current or former employee while they are in business. While many suits are groundless, defending against them is costly and time-consuming.
Employment practices liability policies provide protection from the following wrongful employment practices:
- Harassment
- Discrimination
- Actual or alleged wrongful dismissal, discharge or terminationEmployment-related misrepresentation
- Employment-related libel, slander, humiliation, defamation or invasion of privacy
- Wrongful failure to employ or promote
- Wrongful deprivation of a career opportunity, wrongful demotion or negligent evaluation
- Wrongful discipline
- Vicarious liability for intentional act
- Punitive damages
- Coercion or humiliation in relation to race, marital status, gender, age, physical and/or mental impairments, pregnancy, sexual orientation, and any other protected class established by federal, state and local statutes
Many policies offer the following inclusions and add-ons:
- Consultation, HR assistance and other risk management consultative services.
- Coverage for defense costs outside the policy limits
- Third-party liability coverage
- Wage and hour coverage for claims alleging wage and hour violations
- Volunteer workers can be added as additional insureds
- Extended reporting periods may be added.
To learn more about employment practices liability coverage and how we can help protect your business, contact us today.
The Importance of Third-party EPLI
Many employers do not realize that they have a gap in their insurance coverage that leaves them vulnerable to discrimination and harassment lawsuits from customers, clients, vendors and suppliers. Standard EPLI policies only provide coverage for lawsuits brought about by employees or prospective employees, and most commercial general liability (CGL) policies specifically exclude coverage for harassment and discrimination. That’s where third-party EPLI comes in.
Third-party EPLI fills this gap between EPLI and CGL, and offers protection against allegations of wrongful acts made by customers, clients, vendors and suppliers
Third-party EPLI is vital for businesses that deal with customers on a daily basis. However, even if your firm doesn’t have a lot of interaction with the general public, you may still benefit from third-party EPLI coverage if your operations involve clients, suppliers or vendors. To learn more about third-party EPLI coverage and how we can help protect your business, contact us today.
Do I Really Need Employee Practices Liability Insurance?
Charges against employers for discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination, retaliation, and wage-and-hour violations are at all-time highs.
Latest statistics show the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) received over 91,000 charges in 2016.
In the past, big firms were the main target of EPLI actions but that's no longer the case. All sizes of companies, non-profits and other organizations can find themselves on the receiving end of a lawsuit.
We will review your existing coverage or provide a fast quote for a new policy, without charge and without commitment on your part.
Simply contact us or use this website -- and we'll get to work for you. Please don’t wait till it's too late! That could put the survival of your business at risk.