For most design professionals, professional liability insurance renewals arrive the same way every year — a notice from your insurance broker, completed renewal paperwork, and another year of the same coverage you had before. But renewing without reviewing could be one of the most costly mistakes architects, engineers, land surveyors, and consultants make.

Your business changes every year. Your insurance should be reviewed to account for the changes.

Here is a practical checklist to work through before you renew.

Review Your Coverage Limits

The limits you set when you first purchased your policy may no longer reflect the scale of work your firm takes on today. If your projects have grown in scope, complexity, or dollar value, your professional liability limits should be reconsidered.

Ask yourself: what is the largest project your firm is currently working on? If a claim arose from that project, would your current limits be adequate? If the answer is not a confident yes, it is time to have a conversation with your broker about increasing your limits before renewal.

Check for Changes in Your Business

Any of the following changes to your firm should trigger a coverage review before renewal: new service offerings or project types your firm has taken on; new states or countries where your firm is providing services; a change in the structure of your business such as adding partners or forming a new entity; or any mergers or acquisitions.

Each of these changes can affect your coverage and in some cases your premiums. Your broker should know about all of them before your policy renews.

Review Your Certificate of Insurance Requirements

Many design professionals are required to carry specific coverage limits as a condition of their contracts with project owners, municipalities, or general contractors. Pull your active contracts and confirm your current policy meets every certificate of insurance requirement. If a contract requires higher limits than you currently carry and you renew without adjusting, you may be in breach of contract without realizing it.

Compare Your Options — Do Not Just Renew

Renewing with the same carrier year after year without shopping the market is almost never in your best interest. Insurance markets change. New carriers enter the space. Rates fluctuate. A policy that was competitively priced two years ago may not be today.

Independent brokers like DKB Group LLC market your account to multiple carriers every year — not just at renewal. If you are not seeing multiple options every year, it is worth asking why.

Confirm Your Deductibles Still Make Sense

Your deductible is the amount you pay out of pocket due to a claim. If your firm’s financial position has improved since you last set your deductible, carrying a higher deductible in exchange for a lower premium may make more sense now than it did before. Your broker can model out different deductible scenarios so you can make an informed decision based on your risk tolerance.

Review Your General Liability and Professional Liability Together

General liability and professional liability are two separate policies that need to work together without gaps. Make sure both are renewing around the same time and that your broker is reviewing them both, not in isolation. Coverage gaps between the two can leave your firm exposed in ways that are not obvious until a claim actually happens.

Start Early

The biggest mistake design professionals make during their insurance renewal season is waiting too long. If you start the renewal process two weeks before your expiration date you have very little room to shop the market, negotiate terms, or make meaningful coverage changes.

Start the conversation with your broker at least 60 to 90 days before your renewal date. That window gives you time to review your options, make changes, and get the best outcome rather than just accepting whatever your current carrier offers.

Working With DKB Group LLC

DKB Group LLC works with architects, engineers, environmental consultants, construction managers, healthcare professionals, land surveyors, and other design and technical professionals across 44 states. As independent brokers with over 50 years of combined experience, we actively market your account every year to make sure you are paying market rate for the coverage you need.

If your renewal is coming up, reach out to our team and we will walk through this checklist with you. Get a quote today.