For larger & complex risks

A director’s second opinion on your PI programme

In short: If your firm buys a substantial professional indemnity programme — higher limits, excess layers, contract-driven requirements — an Apex director will review it with you before renewal: limits against your contracts, aggregation and excess structure, wording gaps, and how your risk is being presented to the market. No fee for the review, no obligation, and no disruption to your current arrangements unless you choose to move. Apex Insurance Brokers is an independent, whole-of-market UK broker, directly authorised by the FCA (FRN 724952).

Why firms take a second opinion

Larger PI programmes drift. Limits set years ago no longer match what today’s contracts demand. Excess layers bought in a hard market are still priced like one. Wordings accumulate endorsements nobody has re-read. And a programme that is presented to underwriters the same way every year gets priced the same way every year. A structured review by someone whose job is placing substantial risks either confirms your arrangements are right — useful in itself — or shows you specifically what to change.

Former Wren member? We will check continuity for claims on past projects, fire safety terms and your contract obligations before your first open-market renewal. Read the guide for former Wren members →

What we look at

The review is director-led and follows the same discipline we apply to our own placements: the limit, tested against your current contract book and worst credible claim rather than habit; the basis of cover — any-one-claim versus aggregate, and how reinstatements work; the excess structure and whether it still fits your claims profile and cash position; aggregation language, retroactive dates and the exclusions that matter for your work; continuity issues if you have changed insurer, merged or acquired; and how the risk is presented — because presentation is the part of the premium a firm actually controls.

Recent placements

Details anonymised. Every risk is different and outcomes vary — these show the kind of work we do, not a promise of the same result.

£30m professional indemnity stack for a law firm — restructured at this year’s renewal with a 25% premium saving, and the underwriters brought to the firm’s own boardroom rather than the other way round.
£400,000 placement for a fire-safety and cladding remediation specialist — a class of risk much of the market declines to quote; placed through careful presentation to the right specialist underwriters.
£25m programme for a property management business — placed and restructured while supporting the client through a substantial live claim.

How it works

Send us your current schedule and a note of renewal date, and a director — not an account handler — reviews it and comes back to you with findings in plain English. If the conclusion is that your current broker has it right, we say so. If there is something to fix, you decide whether we fix it. The review works best four to eight weeks ahead of renewal, but a mid-term conversation costs nothing.

Speak directly to a director

A director — not a call centre, not a junior.

Call 0117 325 0027 Email us your schedule

What you get back

Every review ends with a one-page summary written for the people who have to sign off the decision: your board, partners, governors or trustees. It is designed to be put in a board pack as it is.

Your programme at a glance: each cover, its limit and excess, and when it renews.
What is working: the parts of the programme we would leave alone, and why.
Gaps and mismatches: for example a limit below what your contracts require, an exclusion that bites on your actual work, a business interruption period that looks short, or a rebuild value that has not been checked.
Recommended actions, in priority order, with what each one would need from you.
A plain statement if nothing needs changing. If your current arrangements are right, the summary says so.

See an illustrative example of the one-page summary. The summary reflects the documents you send us; it is not a quote, and any change to cover depends on what insurers will offer.

What we actually read

A review is only useful if someone reads the detail. For each review we work through:

every schedule and policy wording, including the endorsements added over the years;
your last proposal or renewal submission, because how a risk is presented to insurers shapes the terms it gets;
your claims and notified circumstances;
the insurance clauses in your main contracts, leases and finance agreements;
the basis and period of any business interruption cover, and when buildings and contents values were last checked.

What happens after you send it

A broker reads it, usually the same working day. Not an automated system: a member of the broking team reads every enquiry and decides who is best placed to handle it.
We come back with the questions insurers will ask. Usually the split of your activities, fee income or turnover, the limits your contracts require, claims history, your current cover and when you need cover to start. If your brief already answers these, this step is short.
We approach the insurers that fit your risk. Apex is independent and works across the market, including Lloyd’s through wholesale brokers, rather than a single panel.
You get the options side by side. We explain the differences in cover, not just the price, so you can see what you are choosing between.
Nothing is placed until you tell us. There is no fee for a quote or a review, and no obligation.

“Just a brief note to give you some well-deserved praise for your work on our PI. Firstly, you get an A for attitude: that can-do approach was refreshing. Secondly, you get an A for the outcome. Another broker came back cheaper, but I decided you worked harder, and the pay-off for us will come in the future with you as our contact. In short, AA is no bad mark in a competitive marketplace. A big thank you from all of us.”

Asset management firm · Professional indemnity

Want a benchmark first? The Apex PI Premium Index shows typical premium ranges by profession and fee band from our own placements.

FAQ

Is the review really free?

Yes. It is how we meet firms with substantial programmes. We are remunerated in the normal way only if you later choose to place business through us, and we are transparent about that remuneration when we get there.

Will you contact our current broker or insurer?

No. The review is between us and you, based on the documents you share. Nothing changes with your current arrangements unless you instruct it.

What size of firm is this for?

Broadly: firms whose programmes involve higher limits, excess layers or contract-driven requirements — or any firm whose PI spend has become a board-level number. If you are unsure whether that is you, the phone call is short.

Apex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 724952). This page is general information, not advice on a specific policy.