NEW YORK, NY, July 31, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Navigators Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NAVG) today announced that its principal underwriting agency subsidiary, Navigators Management Company, Inc., has launched a new Employee Benefit Plan Fiduciary Liability product, providing enhanced coverage for liabilities of sponsor organizations and their designees arising from a myriad of responsibilities, obligations and duties imposed upon fiduciaries.
"The Supreme Court Decision in Fifth Third Bancorp v. Dudenhoeffer on June 25, 2014 rejected the 'presumption of prudence' that traditionally allowed employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) fiduciaries to challenge allegations of breach of fiduciary duty, adding to the exposures already confronted by ESOP fiduciaries," said Steven R. Kuuskvere, President of U.S. Management Liability. "In addition to other obstacles currently facing ESOP fiduciaries, this ruling subjects ESOP fiduciaries to a heightened risk of liability, especially when plans invest exclusively or primarily in employer stock. At Navigators, we pride ourselves on listening to our broker partners, keeping a watchful eye on court rulings and quickly addressing emerging liabilities, and we believe this further illustrates our commitment."
Key coverage features of the new product:
- Including obligations under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), Sec. 404(a)(1)(B), to make "prudent" investments under the definition of "Wrongful Act"
- Flexibility in reporting governmental fact-finding investigations and internal appeals of benefit denials
- Enhanced conduct exclusions providing final, non-appealable adjudication in underlying action not initiated by the Insurer
- Full severability of all exclusions for all Insureds
- Optional duty to defend with Insured's choice as to whether the Insured or the Insurer will assume defense
- Coverage up to $1.5 million for Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) penalties
For additional information, please visit our website at www.navg.com. Products may not be
available in all states, and coverage is subject to actual policy
language. The described coverage is available to qualified
applicants as of the date of this release and its availability is
not guaranteed for any future period. Certain coverages may be
provided by a surplus lines insurer. Surplus lines insurers
generally do not participate in state guaranty funds, and Insureds
are therefore not protected by such funds. Coverage is provided by
Navigators Insurance Company or Navigators Specialty Insurance
Company, with offices at One Penn Plaza, New York, New York
10119.
The Navigators Group, Inc. is an international specialty insurance holding company with insurance company operations, underwriting management companies and operations at Lloyd's. Navigators has offices in the United States, the United Kingdom and Continental Europe, as well as representative offices in China and Brazil.
This press release may contain "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Whenever used in this release, the words "estimate," "expect," "believe," "may," "will," "intend," "continue" or similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. We cannot assure that results that we anticipate will be achieved, since results may differ materially because of known and unknown risks and uncertainties that we face. Please refer to Navigators' most recent Forms 10-K and 10-Q and its other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a description of Navigators' business and the important factors that may affect that business. Navigators undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement.