Tail Malpractice Insurance

Tail insurance, also known as Extended Reporting Period (ERP) coverage, extends your protection after a claims-made policy ends.
It covers claims filed after your policy expires, as long as the incident occurred while your policy was active. Without tail coverage, you’re financially responsible for claims filed after your policy ends.
You’ll need to consider your tail insurance needs when you:

• Retire
• Change employers
• Switch insurance carriers

Claims-made policies respond to claims based on when they’re reported, not when they occurred. That means if a claim is filed after your policy expires, you’re personally responsible for the costs—even if the incident occurred while your policy was active.
Tail malpractice insurance extends your coverage by covering claims filed after your claims-made policy expires, as long as the incident occurred while the policy was active.

Because malpractice claims are often filed months or years after an incident, you need tail coverage to protect you from future claims arising from past care.

Your exposure period begins on your retroactive date—your first day of employment or first day of coverage—and ends on the policy cancellation date. Tail coverage ensures claims for incidents during this period are covered, regardless of when the claim is filed.

Without tail coverage, any claim filed after your policy expires will not be covered, leaving a gap and making you financially vulnerable.

For example, if you’re named in a claim a year after your policy ends for an incident that happened during your coverage period:

• Without tail insurance: You’ll pay for litigation expenses and indemnity payments out of pocket. These costs can reach hundreds of thousands of dollars.
• With tail insurance: Your tail insurance policy covers litigation expenses and indemnity payments, protecting your practice, your future, and everything in between.

If you’re retiring, changing jobs, or switching carriers, your insurance program should be reviewed with expert guidance from a MEDPLI insurance broker.

Tail is the last premium the insurance carrier will collect for the unknown risks they are agreeing to cover on your behalf. The price of tail is generally calculated at 200% of your expiring claims-made premium. While the cost can be high, it helps protect your personal assets from future malpractice claims. Even a lawsuit that results in your favor can cost thousands in legal fees.

If you are leaving a hospital where you were covered under its policy, you can expect higher tail costs than if you had secured coverage independently. The hospital chooses the insurance carrier it believes is best for the institution, which is rarely the best for the individual physician working there.

MEDPLI works for you, not for the hospital. We deliver all viable tail options from a wide range of A-rated carriers, so you are no longer obligated to pay the exorbitant price of the hospital-provided policy.

Most major medical malpractice carriers offer tail insurance policies, including The Doctors Company, MedPro, Coverys, Curi Group/MMIC, and MagMutual. At MEDPLI, we compare tail insurance policies from top A-rated malpractice carriers to help you find the best coverage for your needs at the most affordable price.

You can, but we don’t recommend it. Having an experienced medical malpractice broker behind you streamlines the process and protects you from costly mistakes. Our brokers evaluate your malpractice risk and needs, compare quotes from major providers, and help you secure the most competitive rates.