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Coverage
Directors can be sued personally for how the company is run — by investors, employees, regulators or creditors — and a company indemnity is only worth what the company can pay. D&O protects the people at the table.
Claims against leadership come from every direction — shareholders, employees, regulators, creditors. D&O funds the defence and the settlement.
Allegations of mismanagement, breach of fiduciary duty or misrepresentation brought against directors personally.
When the company indemnifies its leaders, the policy responds to that cost.
The cost of responding to an investigation, where the policy extends to it.
Allegations that investors were misled in a raise or a report.
Directors blamed personally when a company cannot pay its debts.
Usually the largest number — these disputes are slow, document-heavy and expensive whether or not you win.
If there is a board, an investor or outside money of any kind, the people making decisions are carrying personal exposure.
Term sheets routinely require D&O before the round closes — and pricing is better arranged before the deadline.
Experienced board members will not take a seat without it.
Investor board seats mean investor scrutiny of every major decision.
Disputes between owners, heirs and partners land on individuals.
Volunteer boards carry the same personal exposure with fewer resources behind them.
Fundraises, acquisitions, restructures and layoffs are when claims actually arrive.
D&O is not just for public companies. A smaller company is more exposed, not less — it has the same duties with fewer resources to defend a claim, and defence costs land while the allegation is still unproven.
Yes — most D&O claims are brought against private companies, by investors, employees, creditors and regulators. Public-company securities suits are just the ones that make the news.
Side A protects directors personally when the company cannot indemnify them. Side B reimburses the company when it does. Side C covers the company itself for certain claims. The balance between them is where D&O policies genuinely differ.
Many policies exclude claims brought by one insured against another — which matters, because investor-director disputes are a common claim. Carve-backs vary sharply by carrier, and it is the clause we scrutinise first.
Before. Term sheets commonly require cover at close, underwriting takes days not hours, and negotiating under deadline never improves terms.
Carriers set the premium, not us — and D&O pricing varies widely with stage, sector, funding and financial health. We shop your risk to A-rated markets and a licensed specialist walks you through what drives each number. Quotes are free, no obligation, and a licensed specialist reviews your request.
The floor is usually what the term sheet or board appointment letter demands. Beyond that, limits scale with funding raised, headcount and the decisions being made.
Both, in different parts — the personal protection is the reason the policy exists, the company cover is how it usually gets used.
Cover applies to claims made during the policy period, and prior acts are generally covered where no claim was foreseen at inception — continuity matters, which is a reason not to let cover lapse.
