What is an Extended Reporting Period (ERP)?

Reviewed by Apex Insurance Brokers · Last reviewed 2026-08-05

Most professional indemnity (PI) policies in the UK are written on a claims-made basis. That single detail governs everything about how an Extended Reporting Period works — and why you might need one. This guide explains the ‘tail’ concept in plain terms, shows how it differs from run-off cover, and helps you work out whether it matters for your business.

Claims-made cover: why timing matters

A claims-made policy responds to claims first made against you and reported during the policy period — not to when the work was actually carried out. This is different from ‘occurrence’ cover (common in public liability), which responds to events that happened during the policy year, whenever the claim eventually arrives.

Professional claims are often slow to emerge. A design flaw, a missed deadline, or a piece of poor advice might not surface as a complaint for months or years. With claims-made cover, the policy that must respond is the one in force when the claim is made — so you generally need continuous, unbroken cover to stay protected for past work.

The problem appears at the end. When a claims-made policy expires and is not renewed — because you retire, sell up, close down, or simply move insurer — there may be no live policy left to receive a late claim. That gap is exactly what an ERP is designed to close.

The ‘tail’: what an ERP actually does

The ‘tail’ is the trailing stretch of time after a policy ends during which you can still report claims. An Extended Reporting Period buys that time. It keeps the reporting window open so that a claim arising from work you did while insured can still be notified and handled — even though the policy itself has lapsed.

Two points are worth pinning down:

• It looks backwards, not forwards. An ERP only covers wrongful acts committed during the original policy period (subject to any retroactive date). It does not insure any new work done after expiry.
• It extends reporting, not the cover itself. The limit of indemnity, excess and policy terms are usually those of the expiring policy. In most wordings the limit is not reinstated for the tail period — you share the existing limit.

ERPs come in different lengths. Some are short automatic extensions (for example, a set number of days after expiry) built into the wording at no extra cost. Others are longer, purchased extensions — running to a fixed number of years — taken out for an additional premium, typically when a business is winding down.

ERP and run-off: how they relate

People often use ‘ERP’, ‘tail cover’ and ‘run-off cover’ interchangeably, and they overlap heavily — but there is a useful distinction.

Run-off cover is the practical arrangement you put in place when a business (or a professional practice) stops trading but still carries liability for work already done. It keeps PI protection alive for those past services. An Extended Reporting Period is the mechanism that makes this possible on a claims-made policy: it is the period during which run-off claims can be reported. In many wordings, a run-off policy is essentially a multi-year ERP sold as a standalone contract.

In short: run-off is the situation (past work, no ongoing trading); the ERP is the reporting window that lets claims from that past work still be handled.

ERP vs run-off vs continuous renewal

When you are likely to need a tail

An ERP or run-off arrangement typically becomes relevant when:

• You retire or close the business but have delivered advice or services that could still attract a claim.
• You sell or merge and want past liabilities ring-fenced.
• You switch to a new insurer and there is a gap in retroactive cover — though careful renewal usually avoids this.
• You drop a particular activity that a new policy will no longer cover.

For some regulated professions, run-off is not optional. Solicitors’ firms in England and Wales, for example, must arrange run-off cover on closure under the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s Minimum Terms and Conditions, which specify a six-year run-off period. If you belong to a regulated profession, check your regulator’s own rules — they may dictate both the need for and the minimum length of your tail. Speak to us about your requirements before you let a policy lapse.

What to check in the wording

• Length of the period. Automatic tails may be short (days to weeks); purchased run-off often runs for several years. Match it to how long claims realistically take to surface in your field.
• The limit of indemnity. Confirm whether the tail shares the expiring limit or provides a fresh one — and whether it is high enough (illustrative options are commonly written at £1m, £2m or £5m).
• The retroactive date. Claims arising from work before this date are usually excluded, so a broken chain of cover can leave gaps the tail will not fill.
• Deadlines to elect. Where an ERP must be purchased, there is often a strict window after expiry to arrange it. Miss it and the option can be lost.

Common questions

Is an ERP the same as run-off cover?
They are closely linked. The ERP is the reporting window that lets late claims be notified after a claims-made policy ends; run-off cover is the arrangement that uses such a window to protect past work once a business has stopped trading.

Does an Extended Reporting Period cover new work I take on afterwards?
No. It only applies to claims arising from work carried out while the original policy was in force. Any new activity needs its own live policy.

How long should a tail last?
It depends on how long claims take to emerge in your profession and on any regulatory minimum. Some sectors set fixed requirements; others leave it to judgement. As a rule, longer is safer where the limitation period for negligence claims can be lengthy.

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