Lloyd’s of London

Learn about Lloyd’s and How They Can Help You

Lloyd’s of London, or simply Lloyd’s, is an insurance and reinsurance company based in London, England. Lloyd’s can trace its roots to 1688, when shipping insurers were conducting business in Edward Lloyd’s coffee shop. Lloyd’s is not an insurance company; rather, it is an insurance market made up of members backing policies, who were historically wealthy individuals, called Names, with unlimited liability, but since 1994 have included corporations with limited liability. Corporations now account for about 90 percent of capacity at Lloyd’s, and no new Names with unlimited liability are admitted.

In the United States, Lloyd’s is a licensed, or admitted, carrier in Illinois, Kentucky and the U.S. Virgin Islands, giving it full authority to write coverage in those states according to state laws as U.S. based insurers do. In other states, Lloyd’s provides surplus lines coverage, reinsurance and exempt business coverage. In most states, surplus lines insurance is applicable to physicians who have been denied liability insurance by at least three admitted insurance companies. Physicians who obtain surplus lines coverage from insurers like Lloyd’s tend to be older and concentrated in high-risk specialties. Surplus lines insurance carries high premiums, high deductibles and limitations on physician practice, but will cover essentially any applicant, regardless of claims history. Lloyd’s provides reinsurance coverage to medical malpractice insurance companies throughout the United States.

As of March 2010, there was about $100 million of unwritten medical malpractice insurance capacity at Lloyd’s of London. The members with the most available capacity for malpractice insurance included Beazley, Chaucer and Caitlin. Beazley, a Lloyd’s member, primarily insures large hospitals, covering more than 25 percent of all hospitals in America.

There are two primary ways to obtain insurance coverage from Lloyd’s, through a broker or an agent called a “cover holder.” Lloyd’s brokers are certified to insurer clients in the Lloyd’s market, and are often experts in a certain class of risk. Click to request a free Medical Malpractice Insurance Quote from Lloyd’s. A Lloyd’s cover holder is a firm permitted by Lloyd’s syndicates to conduct the syndicates’ insurance transactions with clients, like entering into contracts, by proxy.