Zurich Offers Professional Liability Insurance in face of Rising Litigation for Commercial Errors and Omissions

In recent years, professionals and business corporations are faced with increasing claims related to allegations of negligent activities or failures to use reasonable care. They are also under the scrutiny of tightened business regulations. Seeing the market needs, Zurich Insurance Group (Hong Kong) today announces the launch of a series of professional liability insurance, including Professional Indemnity Solutions, Directors & Officers Liability Solutions, Commercial Crime Solutions and Medical Malpractice Solutions, to help professionals and businessmen manage their risks. Zurich is one of the few insurers in Hong Kong providing such risk coverage.

Greater tendency for litigation, increased accountability of senior company executives, tightened business regulations, and growing risks associated with professional negligence and internal frauds all give rise to the need for professional liability insurance.

The Professional Indemnity Solutions provides coverage against claims that the policyholder, who is a principal/partner/director of a legal entity, becomes legally obligated to pay as a result of an error or omission in his or her professional work. It also insures against the mistakes made by the employees and independent contractors that one hires. For example, it covers the law firms against the financial liabilities for the legal malpractices claims, such as an error in conveyance. The Professional Indemnity Solutions for the architects, engineers and accountants are designed to cover respectively the claims arising from failure to meet functionality requirements, building collapses, incorrect tax advices, etc.

Directors and officers who are now assigned with greater accountability and compliance with increased company regulations. The Directors & Officers Liability Solutions will give them coverage for wrongful acts - errors, breach of duty as well as protection for failure to comply with the business or listing regulations.

Besides, companies are often confronted with potentially devastating crime-related losses arising from misconducts of both employees and non-employees. Examples include employee forgery, theft and embezzlement. By insuring with Zurich's Commercial Crime Solutions, companies can now be better prepared to manage such risks.

Rising claims by patients or their dependants for non-clinical services have warranted medical professionals to be insured against Medical Malpractice Solutions. Professionals or medical organizations to be covered include nursing homes, pharmacists, optometrists, physiotherapists, dentists, Chinese medicine practitioners and the like. And wrong medication by pharmacists, incorrect fitting of lenses causing patient permanent partial loss of sight by optometrists as well as paralyzing patient by chiropractor's mistreatment are some of the typical claims.

Allan Yu, Director of General Business at ZIG sees the market potential of these new professional liability insurance solutions, "with increasing complexity of business practices and higher tendency for litigation of professional negligence, our comprehensive professional liability policies provide an ideal insurance solution.

These new insurance services will be supported through a dedicated team with experienced, specialized and highly trained professionals. The team is led by Mr. Victor Cheung, Professional Liability Senior Underwriting Manager, with more than 10 years of professional liability insurance underwriting experience, and will stand ready to design a coverage program tailor-made to customers' specific needs," added Mr Yu.