Beazley forms consortium to up capacity for wage-and-hour risks

Beazley P.L.C. on Wednesday said it has launched the Concorde Consortium at Lloyd’s of London to provide added capacity for wage-and-hour risks.

Concorde will underwrite wage-and-hour risks on a surplus lines basis with limits up to $25 million available, the London-based specialist insurer said in a statement, adding the consortium will underwrite on both a primary and excess basis.

Coverage is specifically for claims made under the Fair Labor Standards Act, which are excluded from most employment practices liability policies, the statement said, including violations such as nonpayment or under-payment of wages or the misclassification of a worker’s employment status.

The new product complements Beazley’s existing workplace protect policy, which offers limits up to $10 million. Companies will be able to select either stand-alone wage-and-hour cover or incorporate it into their EPL policies, according to the statement.

The consortium is led by Beazley, whose underwriters will quote and bind all risks, the statement said. Hiscox Ltd. is member of the consortium, and additional capacity is being provided by Beazley’s special purpose syndicate 5623, the statement said.

“Demand for wage-and-hour coverage has been the fastest-growing area of EPL,” Wayne Imrie, employment practices liability underwriter at Beazley, said in the statement.