If a client contract or tender requires PI or E&O insurance,
we help you assess the requirements and compare insurers' offers.
We arrange the policy and the certificate for your client.
The policy is meant for IT companies whose mistake, negligence or inaccurate advice can cause a client financial loss, for example:
If subcontractors do part of the work or you place your specialists to work at a client (outstaffing), say so in your request: it affects the cover. If you work as a sole trader or are self-employed, availability depends on the insurer, so we check it case by case.
For other professions, such as consultants, agencies, accountants and engineers, see professional indemnity insurance (PCTA).
The contract, including a master services agreement (MSA), has a professional indemnity clause with a set limit, and a certificate is due before work starts.
Larger companies and foreign clients ask about your policy, its limit and term in supplier questionnaires (vendor onboarding, due diligence).
Tender terms may require insurance to sign the contract or even to submit a bid.
Your current policy is about to expire, or the client wants a higher limit or a different territory. It is important to avoid a gap and keep your retroactive date.
Professional Indemnity (PI) and Errors and Omissions (E&O) mean the same thing in practice: professional liability insurance. PI is the usual term in Europe and the UK, E&O in US contracts. In Latvia it is called professional civil liability insurance.
The policy covers your liability when a client or another third party makes a claim over an error, negligence or inaccurate information in your professional work, plus defence costs. It does not cover your own losses.
Contracts also use the term Tech E&O. In some contracts, especially US ones, it means professional liability together with cyber liability, so we check whether the client also expects cyber insurance.
PI policies usually work on a claims-made basis: the claim must be made and notified to the insurer during the policy period, and the work it relates to must have been done after the retroactive date shown in the policy. That is why the policy is renewed every year without a gap.
In PI policies, data loss, migration errors and system unavailability are often excluded or limited by specific clauses. If this is the main risk in your work, we check how the specific policy wording handles such situations before you choose, and suggest additional cover where needed.
A policy may also set requirements for you, for example to make regular backups and keep one copy in a separate location. Not following them can affect a claim payment.
These policies do not replace each other. To avoid gaps in cover and paying for what you do not need, it helps to know which one covers what:
| Policy | What it covers | Typical situation | What it does not cover |
|---|---|---|---|
| IT professional indemnity (PI, E&O) | Third-party claims for errors, negligence or inaccurate information in your services, and defence costs | An error in software or advice causes a client financial loss and the client makes a claim | Your own losses, costs after a cyber incident, bodily injury, contractual penalties |
| Cyber insurance | Mainly your own costs after an incident (investigation, data restoration, business interruption) and liability for a data breach | Ransomware locks your systems or client data leaks | Professional mistakes in your services |
| General (public) liability | Injury to third parties and damage to their property | A client's representative is injured at your office | Professional mistakes, designs and advice |
| D&O (directors' liability), on request | Personal liability of board members and officers for management decisions | An investor or creditor sues a board member | The company's professional mistakes towards clients |
Depending on the insurer, PI can be combined in one policy with general liability and other covers, but each part has its own limits and terms.
Territory is where you do the work, while jurisdiction is the countries whose courts a covered claim can be brought in. A policy with "worldwide" territory may still exclude claims in US and Canadian courts.
If you have clients in the US or Canada, or your contract provides for those courts, say so in your request: it has a major effect on the offers.
The limit can apply to each claim (any one claim) or to all claims in the policy period together (aggregate). We compare it with what the contract requires.
Defence costs are often included in the limit and reduce what is left for compensation. Several claims from one cause are usually treated as one claim, and the excess may apply to defence costs too.
The retroactive date sets from when your work is insured. When changing insurer, check whether the new policy can keep your existing date.
Circumstances that may lead to a claim must be notified to the insurer at once and while the policy is still in force. If the policy ends and is not renewed, later claims are usually no longer covered.
Send us the client's requirements: the insurance clause, supplier questionnaire questions or your current policy
We review the requirements and ask follow-up questions about your work, turnover and client countries
We prepare offers and compare them with the contract: which requirements are met and which need clarifying
Once the policy is arranged, the insurer issues the policy and certificate, which you send to your client
The more complete the information, the faster insurers can assess the risk. Please prepare:
The information in your request must be accurate and complete: inaccurate or incomplete data can reduce a claim payment or make the policy invalid.
You can send the requirements using the form at the top of the page or to info@agento.lv with the subject "IT PI request". There is no need to send the whole contract: the insurance clause and, if you have one, your current policy certificate are enough. Comparing offers with the contract requirements does not replace a legal review of the contract.
In most cases it is the client, not the law, that requires it: in the contract, a supplier check or tender terms. In some regulated areas requirements can also come from legislation, so we check your specific situation.
Foreign clients usually ask for a certificate in English, and international insurers normally issue it in English. The certificate confirms that the policy exists and shows its key details: the insured, type of business, period, limits and retroactive date, but the cover itself is defined by the policy terms. If the client wants another language, its own name on the certificate or additional insured status, say so in your request: not every policy provides for this, so we check it before you choose.
Not always. Some European PI policies, even with worldwide territory, do not cover claims in US and Canadian courts. In your request, list clients in these countries, their share of your turnover and the law and courts set in the contract. Whether and which insurer can offer cover depends on this.
PI is not cyber insurance. Depending on the policy, it can cover some data-related third-party claims, for example if you unintentionally pass a virus to a client or breach the confidentiality of electronic data. If data leaks because a hacker broke into your systems, claims against you are excluded in some PI policies, so we check this in the specific wording. But your own costs after an incident (investigation, data restoration, ransomware, business interruption) and regulatory penalties are usually not covered by PI. That is what cyber insurance is for.
The retroactive date sets from when your work is insured. If it is the same as the policy start date, earlier work is not insured. The client asks because they want to know whether the policy also applies to work already done on their project. When changing insurer, it is important to keep your existing retroactive date and avoid a gap.
It depends on the insurer and the type of work. Tell us your legal form in the request (SIA, sole trader or self-employed), and before preparing an offer we will tell you which options are available.
We reply to requests within 24 hours. How long it takes to arrange the policy depends on the insurer's assessment and on how complete the information is. If the cover must start on a certain date, put it in your request and we will plan the work so that the policy and certificate are ready in time.
Yes, our services are free. We receive compensation from insurers.
There are usually two ways: raise the limit on your current policy if the insurer agrees, or take out a new policy with a higher limit. Either way, we make sure your retroactive date is kept and there is no gap. Insurers assess high limits individually, so the contract requirement and your turnover figures will help.
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