Risk & Business Magazine Hardenbergh Insurance Group Magazine Fall 2017 | Page 28

EPL INSURANCE
Looking Into
EPL Insurance
I
f you own your own business and
do not have a separate Employment
Practices Liability (EPL) insurance
policy, this article should be
mandatory reading. So says Matt
Filer, Select Business Unit Supervisor at
Hardenbergh Insurance Group. Although
general liability policies sometimes
cover employee claims of harassment or
discrimination, coverage is typically only
in the $50,000 to $100,000 range—far
less than stand-alone policies which can
include coverage of $1 million or more.
Surprisingly, claims in this area can
easily reach that threshold, even without
incorporating legal defense fees that are
often in the $150,000 to $200,000 range.
You may think your business is too
small to merit this type of policy,
but with today’s heightened focus on
discrimination, many employees would
not hesitate to bring suit if they felt
wronged.
THESE LAWSUITS
CAN BE INITIATED
NOT ONLY
BY PRESENT
AND FORMER
EMPLOYEES BUT
BY POTENTIAL
EMPLOYEES TOO.
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Here are some scenarios that can result in
a harassment or discrimination allegation
(you will see pretty quickly that none of
these are outlandish or extremely far-
fetched):
• A female marketing manager was
terminated one month after taking
leave after the birth of her child.
• A blind employee was asked to
remove his guide dog from a
supermarket.
• An employee accidentally sends an
off-color joke to the company’s entire
email list.
• An employee sues a flirtatious
employer for sexual harassment.
• An African-American employee
complains about racial jokes by co-
workers and is transferred to a lower-
paying position “for protection.”
It is so easy to fall into these categories,
in fact, that to be well-protected, the
solution is two-pronged. First, you should
talk to your insurance agent about how
to get coverage for EPL claims—and be
sure you are talking to someone who is
well-versed in this area. Second, your
employees need to be trained on how to
avoid situations that could be perceived
as discrimination or harassment. If
your company has over twenty people,
you should have an employee handbook
that carefully lays out expectations
for—and violations of—both verbal and
physical behavior. You should also hold
BY: MATT FILER,
HARDENBERGH
INSURANCE
regular training sessions to be sure that
employees fully understand the details of
your policies.
If you think that this advice does not
apply to you because you run a family
business, you are mistaken. Family
businesses are just as vulnerable to
these types of issues as any other
organization—arguably more so since
situations among family members can
escalate more quickly.
HAVING EPL
INSURANCE
IS NOT JUST
A SECURITY
CUSHION BUT
ALSO A SAVVY
BUSINESS
DECISION THAT
CAN HELP KEEP
YOUR BUSINESS
AFLOAT IN CASE
OF A LAWSUIT.
Take steps to better prepare your
company should a harassment or
discrimination claim arise, and you will
be thankful later. +