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Employment Practices Liability Insurance

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We offer flexible payment plans to fit any budget needs.

We offer flexible payment plans to fit any budget needs.

We've helped over 60,000 employers buy more affordable insurance coverage.

We've helped over 60,000 employers buy more affordable insurance coverage.

We shop your coverage with up to 35 national carriers.

We shop your coverage with up to 35 national carriers.

We shop your commercial insurance to save you time and money.

What is Employment Practices Liability Insurance?

Employment Practices Liability Insurance, more commonly known as EPLI, provides coverage to employers against claims made by employees alleging discrimination, wrongful termination, harassment and other employment-related issues. Discrimination can be based on sex, race, age or disability, for example. Small and new businesses are most vulnerable to these types of claims as they often lack legal departments and written policies regarding hiring, disciplining and terminating employees.

EPLI policies are typically written on a claims-made basis. That means only claim incidents that occurred and were filed during the policy term will be covered. Tail coverage can extend the time range in which claims may be filed, but the incident must still have occurred during the original policy period.

EPLI policies generally cover director and officers, management personnel and employees as insureds. Excluded in coverage are bodily injury, property damage and intentional or dishonest acts.

Find your lowest business insurance rates.

Find your lowest
employment practices liability rates

We take the time to make sure your business and employees are classified correctly and then we get to work finding the lowest rates available for your insurance coverage.

  • National employment practices liability specialists.
  • Licensed throughout the United States.
  • Programs for standard and tough class codes.
Compare quotes from over 35 carriers.

Compare quotes
from over 35 carriers

Once we've got your best quotes back from our carriers, we take the time to help you understand your options and take the next steps to get you covered quickly.

  • Easy billing and installment plans.
  • Pay As You Go insurance coverage options.
  • We continue to follow up after binding; our service to you never ends.

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Employment Practices Liability Insurance
We shop your commercial insurance to save you time and money.

Why Do I Need Employment Practices Liability Insurance?

The moment you interview your first employee you have opened your business up to lawsuit risk. If you choose not to hire that employee, he/she may decide you discriminated against them based on reasons like age, sex or race. Alternatively, if you hired that employee and then terminated them, no matter what your stated reason, that employee can still claim wrong termination. In both scenarios the employee can file suit regardless of proof or documentation, leaving you stuck with court costs when you may have done nothing wrong.

There were close to 100,000 equal employment opportunity charges in 2016. The greatest percentage of lawsuits were in Texas, Florida and California, respectively. The number one allegation, with approximately 5,000 charges, was for retaliation, followed closely by race with about 3,500 charges1. Retaliation is the treating of an applicant or employee less favorably because he or she has filed complaints (either within your organization or with another), filed discrimination charges, participated in a discrimination investigation (for example, as a witness), or opposed discrimination openly (for example, threatened to file a charge of discrimination). All types of retaliation are illegal, but not every employer has the resources to educate their employees about it. Frequent training and written policies are both proven ways of reducing retaliation claims, as well as other discrimination charges that can be filed against you or your company.


1As reported by U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 2017

What Does Employment Practices Liability Insurance Cost?

The cost for EPLI coverage varies based on the following factors:

  • Number of employees.
  • Claims history.
  • Employee turnover rate.
  • Risk mitigation systems in place.

EPLI can often be endorsed onto a BOP or CPP, depending upon the size and type of business. Coverage can also be added to a general liability policy or bought as stand-alone coverage. Keep in mind that insurance companies prefer to write multiple lines at one time. Doing so greatly benefits the policyholder, as bundling offers discounts and credits.

What are Common Employment Practices Liability Claims?

The first step to take when you think you have a claim is to call your agent. Your agent will help you organize your information and guide you through calling the insurance carrier who will process your claim. The most frequent types of claims covered under EPLI policies include:

  • Wrong termination.
  • Discrimination.
  • Sexual harassment.
  • Retaliation.

Additionally, EPLI can cover other types of inappropriate workplace conduct including employment-related:

  • Defamation.
  • Invasion of privacy.
  • Failure to promote.
  • Deprivation of career opportunity.
  • Negligent evaluation.

How Can I Reduce my Risk?

Reducing EPLI risks is not easy, but there are some steps to take which can help minimize the risk to your company. There are many laws in place to protect the rights of people you hire or consider to hire. Knowing these laws and making sure your employees know these laws is the first step in risk mitigation. In order to assure these laws and other human resource policies are followed at your business we recommend doing the following:

  • Develop an employee handbook, outline every workplace policy and expectation. This should include everything from attendance and discipline policies to complaint processes and legal disclosures. It is also a good idea to add a zero-tolerance policy to the handbook, regarding any misconduct or discrimination in the workplace.
  • Web-based or third-party training on subjects such as sexual harassment for all employees.
  • Write complete job descriptions for every position in your business, include expectations, responsibilities and required skills.
  • Conduct scheduled performance reviews, carefully documenting each one.
  • Make sure you have an effective record keeping system in place, the best defense in a lawsuit is documentation.
  • When developing your job application make sure to exclude any language asking candidates to identify their sex, age, religion or any other protected class. Be sure to include equal opportunity employment statements and “at-will” employment policies.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission provides resources to small businesses to help them understand EEOC and how to reduce the risk of claims.

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Do the federal employment discrimination laws apply to my business?
  2. Yes, essentially, if you have at least one employee then you are subject to discrimination laws. There may also be state and local government laws that apply to your business. Speaking with an EPLI expert at The Insurance Shop can help clear up any confusion. Our specialists undergo hundreds of hours of training and have many years of experience in employment law.

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