FARMINGTON, Conn., April 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Beazley (BEZ.L), a leading insurer of specialty lines, is launching BeazleySource, a suite of risk management services for its employment practices liability (EPL) and private company D&O clients. Combining succinct, practical advice with the targeted delivery capabilities of the Internet, BeazleySource represents a major step forward in risk management and loss control for these exposures.
BeazleySource is a proprietary platform delivering customized risk management services to insureds based on their individual exposures. These services are included at no additional cost with the purchase of BeazleyOne, a policy that combines EPL and D&O coverage for private companies, or any stand alone EPL policy. They will be accessible to insureds from May 1, 2006.
Features of the employment-related suite of services include:
-- online training regarding sexual harassment that meets the requirements
of the California state law requiring employers to train their
employees on sexual harassment as well as similar laws in Minnesota,
Maine and Hawaii;
-- online training on employee terminations and how to prevent
discrimination; and
-- information on compliance with wage and hour laws, a complement to
Beazley's new wage and hour coverage. Wage and hour claims involve
allegations that an employer has violated federal or state laws that
govern how employees get paid: they can be costly to defend and are
routinely brought against employers of all sizes.
Additionally, BeazleySource includes model employment policies and procedures that insureds can download and customize for use within their own organization, all of which are available in Spanish as well as English.
"We consulted widely and have designed the risk management services available through BeazleySource to address the real issues that face employers today," said Carrie Brodzinski, Beazley's US product manager for EPL and BeazleyOne.
Insureds who purchase a BeazleyOne policy receive all of the
employment-related services as well as access to training and information designed to mitigate the risk of claims against directors and officers. The D&O loss prevention module includes training on investigations and ethics, model policies and journals dedicated to exposure-related issues, and news that may impact board members and executives. "As events unfold and laws evolve, they can combine to have unexpected consequences. BeazleySource is designed to keep insureds informed and provide them with advice that they can use to avoid litigation," said Brodzinski.
Risk management services are currently available for EPL and BeazleyOne, but Beazley will be expanding the offering in the near future. "We are developing risk management services for our fiduciary and crime insureds as well," said Brodzinski. "These services give our insureds a distinct advantage in the effort to avoid claims and to mitigate exposure should a claim arise."
Insureds can begin accessing BeazleySource immediately after binding coverage with Beazley by self registering on the site. Upon initial registration, insureds can manage who within their organization can gain access to the site and can also select which portions of the site are accessible by individual users. "The site is designed to offer maximum flexibility and ease of use. This next generation of web-based risk management offers significant advantages such as self registration, faster, smarter training modules and more frequent updates that truly make it state of the art," Brodzinski said.
Background to Beazley
Beazley Group plc (BEZ.L), founded in 1986, is the parent company of specialist insurance businesses with operations in the UK and the United States. Beazley manages two Lloyd's syndicates (Syndicate 2623 and Syndicate 623) with aggregate underwriting capacity in 2006 of 830m pounds Sterling ($1.46bn). Both syndicates are rated A by A.M. Best. The Beazley syndicates focus on specialist risk business in selected markets, including professional indemnity, commercial property, marine, reinsurance, and personal lines. Beazley is a market leader in many of its chosen segments, such as professional indemnity insurance for US law firms and for US architects and engineers. Beazley is quoted on the London Stock Exchange.
In the United States, Beazley's underwriters focus on writing specialist insurance products in the admitted market, backed by Beazley Insurance Company, Inc., a US admitted carrier in all 50 states; and surplus lines risks, backed by the Beazley syndicates at Lloyd's. Beazley Insurance Company is rated A- by A.M. Best.
Beazley's website address is: http://www.beazley.com
CONTACT: Carrie Brodzinski, +1-860-677-3750, or Amanda Lee (Finsbury), +44-20-7251-3801