Supported, unsupported, lead, buffer, and excess-of-excess structures solve different placement problems.
Casualty and Excess
Commercial Umbrella and Excess Liability.
More limit is not the same as more coverage.
Commercial umbrella and excess liability provide limits above scheduled underlying insurance or a stated attachment, but the policy can follow, narrow, or occasionally broaden the underlying coverage. The schedule, attachment, exclusions, carrier mix, claims history, and tower structure determine whether the extra limit is useful.
Placement context
Facts to confirm before applying.
Treat the tower like a structure, not a stack of prices. Every layer needs to know what sits below it, where it attaches, which forms it follows, and which exclusions it adds. A cheap excess quote over the wrong underlying schedule is not a solution.
Coverage scope
What the coverage may address.
Follow-form language does not eliminate the need to compare exclusions, definitions, notice, defense, and attachment wording.
Underlying erosion, self-insured retentions, aggregates, sublimits, and carrier differences affect when a layer responds.
Placement factors
Facts that affect placement.
- Large or layered towers and unsupported excess
- High-hazard classes, difficult venues, contracting, transportation, or products exposure
- Underlying policies from multiple or nonadmitted insurers
- Claims history or requested follow-form treatment outside standard appetite
Coverage and access are separate questions
Coverage guidance does not confirm a current market route, quote, policy terms, or bind authority for a particular account.
Submission preparation
Prepare a consistent underwriting file.
Account narrative
Draw the tower in plain language: underlying policy, attachment, requested layers, form relationships, key exclusions, loss development, and the reason the insured needs the limit.
Include these facts
- Complete schedule of underlying insurance with forms and endorsements
- Requested tower, attachment points, and target effective date
- Operations, exposure, vehicle, payroll, revenue, and location schedules
- Currently valued loss runs for every relevant underlying line
Resolve these questions before market review
- Which policies and limits must the excess layer follow?
- Is the request supported, unsupported, lead, or excess of excess?
- Which exclusions or gaps in the underlying program require attention?
- What loss development or aggregation could affect the tower?
Submission errors
Avoid these three issues.
- A schedule listing only carrier names and limits, without forms or covered lines
- Asking for follow form as if the phrase guarantees identical terms
- Quoting a tower before the underlying program and loss development are settled
Hedge resources
Forms and class guidance for this coverage.
Hedge-owned form
Hedge Excess and Umbrella Supplemental
A fillable Hedge supplemental for excess and umbrella liability submissions.
Read and downloadHedge-owned form
Hedge Loss and Claims Supplement
A fillable Hedge supplement for organizing prior losses, claims, and open-claim detail for wholesale review.
Read and downloadClass appetite
Community association excess liability
Read the public, directional class guidance and prepare for account-specific review.
Review class guidanceClass appetite
General contractors
Read the public, directional class guidance and prepare for account-specific review.
Review class guidanceClass appetite
Security guards. Armed
Read the public, directional class guidance and prepare for account-specific review.
Review class guidanceRelated coverage
Review related exposures.
Casualty and Excess
Commercial General Liability
The class code gets the file opened. The operations narrative gets it quoted.
Open coverageTransportation and Marine
Commercial Auto and Trucking
Vehicles are the schedule. Drivers and operations are the risk.
Open coverageCasualty and Excess
Products Liability
The product is the exposure. The supply chain tells us who owns the failure.
Open coverageHedge review
Send the account for review.
You do not need a perfect packet to start. Send the account, requested line, effective date, current applications, available loss information, and the fact making the placement difficult. Hedge will separate missing information from market-ready information before any account-specific route is confirmed.