EPLI covers businesses against claims by workers that their legal rights as employees of the company have been violated.
The number of lawsuits filed by employees against their employers has been rising. While most suits are filed against large corporations, no company is immune to such lawsuits. Recognizing that smaller companies now need this kind of protection, some insurers provide this coverage as an endorsement to their Businessowners Policy (BOP). An endorsement changes the terms and conditions of the policy. Other companies offer EPLI as a stand-alone coverage.
Typically built into Employment Practices Liability Insurance, Sexual Harassment Insurance coverage effectively pays for the legal expenses related to defending a claim brought against an employer and/or employee and could reimburse for settlements or decisions against the employer and/or employee. These lawsuits can come from former or current employees and is likely to cost a lot of money.
Employment Practices Liability Insurance policies provide coverage to employers. Generally covering everybody in the organization, these insurance policies protect the company from potential losses even in events of claims that are not declared against the organization as an entity. Among the insured persons, the directors, officers, the organization’s management team, employees, and more are included. This implies that financial losses caused due to sexual harassment claims against any staff of the company will be covered by Employment Practices Liability Insurance.
The cost of EPLI coverage depends on your type of business, the number of employees you have and various risk factors such as whether your company has been sued over employment practices in the past. The policies will reimburse your company against the costs of defending a lawsuit in court and for judgments and settlements. The policy covers legal costs, whether your company wins or loses the suit. Policies also typically do not pay for punitive damages or civil or criminal fines. Liabilities covered by other insurance policies such as workers compensation are excluded from EPLI policies.
