Commercial Crime Forms for Private Investigators

How Private Investigators should think about occurrence vs claims-made coverage

The occurrence-vs-claims-made decision on Private Investigators Commercial Crime is one of the most important form choices. The trigger determines which year's policy responds to a claim — and that matters because rates, limits, and carriers change year to year.

Occurrence forms are simpler operationally — buy a policy, it covers you for events in that period forever. Claims-made forms require continuous renewal and careful tail-coverage planning to avoid gaps. The premium savings on claims-made can be material in early years, then catch up as the policy "matures."

Tail coverage (ERP) on Private Investigators Commercial Crime

When a claims-made Commercial Crime policy terminates (non-renewal, cancellation, carrier change, business sale), the private investigator loses the ability to file claims under that policy. Tail coverage — also called Extended Reporting Period (ERP) — preserves the ability to file claims after termination for events that occurred during the policy period.

For Private Investigators, the standard tail is 1-3 years; some policies offer unlimited tails. Cost is typically 100-250% of the final annual premium for the full tail period. Planning for tail coverage at every claims-made policy transition is essential to avoid uncovered exposure.

How form breadth affects Private Investigators Commercial Crime

Form breadth on Private Investigators Commercial Crime is a coverage-vs-premium tradeoff. Broader forms cover more situations and cost more; narrower forms cost less but exclude more risks.

For most Private Investigators, the marginal premium for broader coverage is well worth it. Special form on property and inland marine has become the default for good reason — the unenumerated risks the form covers are exactly the surprises that produce claim-time disputes on basic forms.

Scheduling vs blanketing on Private Investigators Commercial Crime

For Commercial Crime lines covering multiple items (property, equipment, inland marine), Private Investigators can choose between scheduled coverage (each item listed individually with its own limit) and blanket coverage (single combined limit across all items).

• Scheduled: precise, easier to administer for stable inventory, may produce coinsurance issues if individual values are wrong
• Blanket: more flexible, covers items not specifically listed (subject to overall limit), administratively simpler for changing inventory

For most Private Investigators, blanket coverage is preferred unless contractual requirements demand scheduled. The flexibility outweighs the slight premium difference.

Replacement cost vs actual cash value on Private Investigators Commercial Crime

Valuation form on Private Investigators Commercial Crime property lines is one of the most consequential form choices. Two policies covering the same building with the same limit can pay dramatically different amounts at claim time based on valuation.

The recommendation for most Private Investigators: choose replacement cost on real property and important equipment; consider ACV only for items that genuinely depreciate fast or where the private investigator accepts the lower claim payment.

The endorsements that matter for Private Investigators on Commercial Crime

Most Commercial Crime policies on Private Investigators benefit from standard endorsements that extend coverage:

• Additional insured (blanket): lets the private investigator grant AI status to contracting parties without per-contract endorsements
• Waiver of subrogation (blanket): required by many contracts
• Primary and noncontributory: makes the private investigator's policy respond first to AI claims
• Completed operations extension: extends coverage beyond policy expiration for completed work

These typically cost $0-$500/year combined and handle the vast majority of contractual requirements without per-contract negotiation.

Which form decisions move Private Investigators Commercial Crime premium most

Private Investigators Commercial Crime pricing varies meaningfully with form choices, but the variation usually buys real coverage rather than just adding cost. The standard recommendations (special form, RC, occurrence, blanket endorsements) typically add 10-25% to base premium and produce materially better claim-time outcomes.

Going the other way — basic form, ACV, claims-made, scheduled — saves premium but creates exposure that often shows up at claim time. For most Private Investigators, the savings don't justify the risk.