Retroactive dates and run-off cover in professional indemnity insurance

The policy uses a specified date and definition to decide which previous work may qualify. Read the exact clause: the date alone does not confirm that every service since then is insured.

Find the date and clause in the schedule, which shows your particular policy details, and the wording. Read the insuring clause, which describes the cover, and endorsements, which change the terms.

Then check how they apply to the services and business insured, earlier claims or known problems, reporting requirements, exclusions and conditions. The date is not necessarily when you started trading or first bought insurance. Any agreed earlier date must be established by the terms. The professional indemnity insurance page explains the wider cover.

If no date is stated, ask how previous work is treated. “Unlimited retroactivity” is also wording to clarify: it may indicate no stated date restriction, but does not remove other policy requirements or insure every earlier act.

Cover for some earlier work does not mean the policy itself started earlier. It must still meet the policy’s timing and other requirements.

A known claim is not automatically covered. If an offer is described as “backdated”, ask: “Which previous-work clause is being offered, and when does the policy actually start?”

Example 1: earlier work and a new policy

Fictional example. Compare two assumed retroactive provisions. In both versions, the policy starts on 1 January 2028.

Date	Event	What to check
May 2027	Professional services performed.	Are the services and business insured?
1 January 2028	Policy starts.	What previous-work terms apply?
June 2028	Allegation received.	Does it meet the claim definition and timing requirements?
June 2028	Notice submitted.	Does it meet the recipient, method and deadline requirements?

Assume each version restricts the relevant acts before its stated retroactive date:

Hypothetical retroactive date	What the date comparison shows
1 January 2027	May 2027 work falls after this retroactive date; other cover requirements still need checking.
1 January 2028	May 2027 work predates the assumed boundary.

Neither comparison decides liability or cover. Activities, business insured, earlier claims or known problems, claim timing and notification still need checking. June notice is not necessarily valid simply because it is in the policy year. The examples in this guide illustrate concepts, not actual offers or recommended dates or durations.

Keeping the same retroactive date does not guarantee the same cover for previous work. Compare:

• services and business insured;
• work carried out by an earlier business or under a previous business structure;
• previous claims and known problems;
• reporting requirements, exclusions and amendments.

For example, consecutive policy periods with the same retroactive date may still differ in the services or business insured. Check exact end and start times separately. A familiar business name does not establish cover for all previous services and responsibilities.

A new policy does not automatically repair an earlier gap. Ask how the terms treat work performed during the gap. Separately, ask how they treat a claim first made during the gap; do not assume universal inclusion or exclusion of either.

Tell the proposed insurer what it needs to know when arranging replacement cover. Separately, report relevant matters under the existing policy’s requirements; disclosure to the new insurer does not necessarily notify the existing insurer.

Before ending existing insurance, confirm agreed cover, its effective date, outstanding conditions and applicable updated documents. A quotation, request or proposed amendment does not itself confirm active cover. Use the renewal guide for the wider renewal process.

Run-off cover concerns later claims about insured work performed before an agreed work cut-off date. Stopping work is sometimes called cessation. New work after that date is not automatically included.

The arrangement may be documented as a policy, endorsement or other agreed provision. An extended reporting provision allows reporting under specified conditions beyond an ordinary reporting window; do not assume it is the same as run-off cover. Check the trigger and reporting terms of each.

Availability, price and terms need confirmation. Check whether the comparison service offers the arrangement you need.

A retroactive date helps identify which previous work may qualify. It does not itself provide a policy or reporting period after work stops. Check the run-off arrangement’s services, business insured, work cut-off date and other terms too.

Ask both:

• Is the previous work included?
• Do the later claim and reporting meet the arrangement’s requirements?

Dates alone cannot answer either question. The claims-made and claims-occurring guide explains timing and circumstance notification.

Example 2: a later allegation after work stops

Assume an arrangement accepts relevant services up to 30 June 2028. The one-year run-off period below demonstrates the concept; it is not a recommended duration.

Date or period	Event or arrangement
May 2028	Professional services performed.
30 June 2028	Agreed work cut-off date.
1 July 2028 to 30 June 2029	Illustrative run-off period.
August 2028	New services would fall after the work cut-off date.
February 2029	Allegation received about May 2028 work.

For the February allegation, check whether the previous service, business insured, later claim and reporting meet the terms. Record the notification date and check the required recipient, method, content and timing. No valid notice or covered claim is assumed, and the period does not extend automatically beyond June 2029.

August work is a separate question. If activities restart or continue after the cut-off, obtain clarification and any necessary agreed cover; do not assume it is included.

There is no single suitable duration for every business. Discuss these points with the provider and appropriate advisers:

• work history and possible liabilities;
• contracts and professional or regulatory requirements;
• location, relevant legal jurisdiction and available terms.

Policy duration, legal time limits and professional requirements

Keep three questions separate:

• How long is the insurance agreed for?
• Within what time can a legal claim be brought?
• What continuing insurance does a contract, profession or regulator require?

Do not rely on a blanket six-year answer. Legal rules depend on the claim, facts, knowledge and jurisdiction; get specialist advice where needed. Scotland and Northern Ireland require separate consideration. Requirements for one profession do not automatically apply to other consultants or contractors.

For a proposed arrangement, ask:

• Can it be renewed, or does it provide cover for several years?
• Which limits are shared across the period?
• Does any fresh annual limit apply?
• What future availability or renewal has actually been confirmed?

Do not assume a multi-year arrangement has a fresh limit each year or that renewal is guaranteed. See limits and excesses for the amount checks.

A quote request is not notification under an existing policy. Buying new insurance does not automatically insure an already known problem.

Check and follow the applicable notification provisions promptly, using the claims contact and procedure in your policy documents. Do not wait for proceedings, a final loss figure, a new quote or business closure. Asking Clearcut a question does not notify the insurer.

Keep any original notice, response and reference. If a later demand or development arrives, check what further reporting or updates are required. Receipt of a notice does not necessarily confirm cover.

The complaint’s status, effect of notice and consequences of delay depend on the terms and facts. The business insurance claims guide helps you prepare for the claims route.

For an existing concern, use the reporting guidance above before completing this checklist.

Use this preparation record for a provider discussion and keep it with your policy documents. It is not a coverage assessment.

Group	Check	What to record or ask
Work history and businesses	Previous work	Services, dates and relevant activities.
Work history and businesses	Businesses and people insured	Correct business or people, including work under an earlier structure.
Work history and businesses	Work cut-off date	When services stop and which cut-off is agreed.
Existing policy and known problems	Policy documents	Insurer, section, version, schedule and endorsements.
Existing policy and known problems	Retroactive-date terms	Clause, date, exceptions and restrictions.
Existing policy and known problems	Claims or potential problems	Notification references and reporting or update requirements.
Proposed run-off terms	How the cover works	Agreed arrangement, effective dates, conditions and documents.
Proposed run-off terms	Period and renewal	Start, end, reporting windows and renewal terms.
Proposed run-off terms	Limits	Amounts, aggregate basis and use across the period.
Proposed run-off terms	Legal costs	Treatment against limits and any separate restrictions.
Proposed run-off terms	Excess	Contribution amount and how it applies.
Proposed run-off terms	Total price	Premium, fees and payment terms.
Proposed run-off terms	Resumed or new work	What must be agreed if work restarts or continues.
Obligations and questions	Continuing requirements	Contracts, professional obligations and reviewed legal considerations.
Obligations and questions	Unresolved items	Clause reference, written answer and revised documents needed.

Where summaries are silent, record “not stated; ask” rather than assuming inclusion or exclusion. Save written clarification and note any revised documents still needed. Read the wording, schedule and amendments together; ask the provider which terms apply if documents conflict.

Specialist note: Sale, merger or dissolution (the formal ending of a company’s legal existence) can raise different business-history and liability questions. Obtain appropriate advice; do not assume liabilities disappear or transfer, or that a buyer’s insurance covers the seller’s previous work.

You could ask:

Which previous services and businesses are included? What work cut-off date applies? When must later claims be made and reported? Which restrictions remain? Please identify the applicable terms.

Resolve continuity questions and confirm the agreed cover before stopping existing insurance. Clearcut does not provide a personal run-off duration assessment.

For future offers, use the quote-comparison guide to record terms consistently.