What is a 'Claims-Made' policy?

A 'Claims-Made' policy is a type of liability insurance that provides coverage for claims made during the policy period, regardless of when the incident actually occurred. This means that as long as the claim is reported while the policy is in effect, the insurer will cover it, even if the event leading to the claim happened before the policy was purchased or outside of the policy period.

This type of policy is particularly important in industries where claims may arise long after the service or incident has occurred, such as professional liability insurance for doctors or architects. The emphasis is on the timing of the claim rather than the timing of the incident, which distinguishes it from other types of policies that base coverage on when the event occurred.

In contrast, other types of policies may have different limitations or stipulations regarding the timing of the incidents or conditions under which coverage applies.