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🏥 '''Malpractice insurance''' is a form of [[Definition:Professional liability insurance | professional liability coverage]] that protects licensed professionals — most commonly physicians, surgeons, dentists, lawyers, and other practitioners — against [[Definition:Claim | claims]] alleging negligence, errors, or omissions in the delivery of their professional services. Within the insurance market, it represents a significant and actuarially complex [[Definition:Line of business | line of business]], characterized by long [[Definition:Tail | claim tails]], high severity potential, and acute sensitivity to the legal and regulatory climate of each jurisdiction. Medical malpractice, the largest segment, has historically been one of the most volatile classes in the [[Definition:Property and casualty insurance | property and casualty]] sector.

⚙️ Policies are typically written on either an [[Definition:Occurrence policy | occurrence]] or [[Definition:Claims-made policy | claims-made]] basis. Occurrence forms cover incidents that take place during the [[Definition:Policy period | policy period]] regardless of when the claim is filed, while claims-made forms respond only to claims reported during the active policy term, often requiring [[Definition:Tail coverage | tail coverage]] (also called an extended reporting period endorsement) when the professional changes carriers or retires. [[Definition:Underwriter | Underwriters]] evaluate applicants based on specialty, claims history, geographic location, patient volume, and risk management practices. [[Definition:Premium | Premiums]] vary dramatically — a neurosurgeon in a high-litigation state faces rates many times higher than a family practitioner in a [[Definition:Tort reform | tort-reform]] jurisdiction. [[Definition:Loss reserving | Reserving]] for this line demands careful [[Definition:Actuarial science | actuarial]] attention because claims can take years to emerge and additional years to resolve through litigation or settlement.

⚖️ Malpractice insurance occupies a uniquely prominent place in public policy debates. Periods of sharp [[Definition:Premium | premium]] increases — so-called malpractice crises — have driven legislative action including damage caps, screening panels, and modified statutes of limitations. These [[Definition:Tort reform | tort reforms]] directly reshape the [[Definition:Loss trend | loss trends]] that [[Definition:Insurance carrier | carriers]] must model. On the supply side, the market features a mix of commercial insurers, [[Definition:Risk retention group (RRG) | risk retention groups]], [[Definition:Mutual insurance company | physician-owned mutuals]], and [[Definition:Captive insurance company | captive]] arrangements, each offering different risk-sharing structures. For practitioners, maintaining adequate malpractice coverage is often a licensing or hospital-credentialing requirement, making it both a critical financial safeguard and a condition of professional practice.

'''Related concepts'''
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Definition:Professional liability insurance]]
* [[Definition:Claims-made policy]]
* [[Definition:Tail coverage]]
* [[Definition:Tort reform]]
* [[Definition:Risk retention group (RRG)]]
* [[Definition:Medical malpractice]]
{{Div col end}}

Definition:Malpractice insurance - Revision history

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