Claims-made policies: questions to ask before switching

Make a timeline before the call

On one sheet, note the dates of earlier work, your current policy period, the proposed renewal or replacement date and any relevant client complaint. Include a retroactive date if one appears in the documents, and mark it as a policy term requiring explanation rather than interpreting it yourself.

Professional liability is commonly written on a claims-made basis, as the Insurance Information Institute explains. Timing and notification conditions deserve attention when you change insurer, retire or stop trading. Read your own wording and obtain advice on the particular sequence of events.

Questions for a proposed switch

1. How does the proposed wording address work completed before its start date?
2. Is there a retroactive date, and what does it mean in this policy?
3. Are there exclusions or conditions relating to prior knowledge or existing circumstances?
4. What must be reported, to whom, by which deadline and in what form?
5. What happens if the current and proposed periods do not meet exactly?
6. Which documents confirm the answers?

Keep the current insurer’s response separate from the new provider’s response. A statement about one contract does not automatically describe the other. Ask for clarification where their explanations leave an apparent gap.

Do not wait for a lawsuit to ask about a complaint

If a client has already raised a concern, review your notification obligations promptly and contact the appropriate insurer or broker. This guide cannot decide whether a particular email is a claim or a circumstance that must be reported. Avoid using a general website definition to postpone a notification required by your policy.

Prepare a factual chronology, retain relevant correspondence and follow the insurer’s instructions. Do not send confidential documents to this website; it does not operate a claims service.

Closing the business is another review point

Stopping new projects does not answer how an allegation about past work would be treated. Ask whether extended reporting or run-off arrangements are available and what they actually do under the proposed terms. Clarify their duration, scope, cost and any continuing duties.

Use a simple written prompt: “I expect to stop providing these services on this date. What should I understand about potential allegations concerning work already completed?” Include any remaining contractual obligations for professional review.

Keep the continuity file

Retain policy schedules, full wordings, endorsements, applications and correspondence together. Use descriptive filenames that include the policy period. Keep a short index identifying which documents apply to which dates.

At the end of the discussion, write down what you believe has been agreed and ask the adviser to correct misunderstandings. The purpose is to make an informed change with the relevant documents available, not to infer cover from the label “claims-made.”

US and UK scope: use the right source

This guide helps US and UK freelancers prepare a policy discussion. It does not state a nationwide US rule or a single rule for every UK profession. The California Department of Insurance glossary describes claims-made cover with a retroactive-date qualification; that is a California educational source, not a substitute for another state's requirements. The UK's Association of British Insurers explains why a change of insurer or stopping work calls for a discussion about previous work and run-off arrangements.

Use those explanations to identify questions, then have the actual wording interpreted for your circumstances. Do not use a general article to choose a reporting deadline or the length of cover after retirement.

Worked example: separate the dates before comparing

This invented document exercise concerns a freelance marketing consultant; it is not an actual claim. Suppose the consultant completes a project on 15 March 2025, proposes switching insurer on 1 November 2026, and later receives an allegation on 10 December 2026. The existing schedule shows a retroactive date of 1 January 2024. A replacement quote instead shows 1 November 2026.

The first useful finding is a document mismatch: the two retroactive dates differ, and the project predates the date shown on the replacement quote. That observation is a reason to ask how earlier work would be treated, not a conclusion that either insurer must pay or that changing one date guarantees cover. Ask the proposed insurer to identify the relevant prior-work provisions and any amendments, and ask the current provider what options apply if its policy ends.

Now change one fact: the client had already complained on 20 October 2026, before the proposed switch. Put that correspondence into the chronology rather than treating the December allegation as the first relevant event. Ask promptly about the existing policy's notification requirements and the replacement application's questions. Do not wait for a complete worksheet or an actual lawsuit before following reporting instructions.

The exercise works for a US consultant discussing E&O or a UK consultant discussing professional indemnity, but the answers must come from their own documents and applicable jurisdiction. These sample dates create no reporting grace period.

A two-document continuity worksheet

Make two separate notes headed “current policy” and “proposed policy.” Under each, complete the following fields. Record “not yet confirmed” where a document or answer is missing.

1. Document identity: insurer, insured entity, schedule version, full wording and endorsements. Use the document-pack guide to find missing items.
2. Dates: start and end dates and any stated times; retroactive date if present; date of relevant work; earliest complaint or circumstance; notification date, if a report has been made.
3. Earlier work: the section addressing services performed before inception, its restrictions, and the provider's explanation tied to that section.
4. Notification: the policy's reporting recipient, method and timing requirements. Keep evidence of any actual submission separately; this worksheet is not notification.
5. Open questions: the precise clause, the person asked and the written answer. Distinguish an explanation from an agreed amendment that appears in final documents.
6. After the change: who retains the records and which contract obligations or later changes need further advice.

Compare the two notes field by field. A useful outcome is a resolved discrepancy with a document reference, not a score declaring one quote “safe.” If a new schedule arrives, check it against the version discussed before filing it as final.

If you stop work: questions about run-off or extended reporting

The ABI identifies run-off and possible prior-incident cover from a new insurer as matters to discuss. Do not treat “run-off,” “tail” and “extended reporting” as a promise of identical terms across products or countries.

• What earlier services and insured entities would the proposed arrangement address?
• Which dates govern eligibility, purchase or election, and notification?
• What exclusions, limits, remaining aggregate and continuing duties apply?
• Does it address only specified past work, and what happens if you resume services?
• What contractual or profession-specific requirements need separate advice?

Ask for the available options and their complete terms; do not assume availability or select a duration from this article. Use the renewal review for the broader business-change record, and keep this worksheet focused on continuity.

Update, 10 October 2026: added a dated hypothetical example, a two-document worksheet and explicit US/UK source boundaries. AI-assisted educational content; no independent professional insurance review has been recorded.