A claim can arrive after the work ends.
A consultant completes work in 2025. The customer first demands compensation in 2026. Discovering a problem is not necessarily a claim; check the policy definition and first demand date.
For claims made and reported coverage, reporting within the required period matters too. Check whether the 2026 policy’s retroactive date includes the earlier work. A 2025 policy alone does not establish protection for that later claim.
Before agreeing to a survival period.
- Identify which required policies use claims made wording.
- Check prior acts protection when renewing or changing insurer.
- Distinguish the policy period from the contract’s required period.
- Consider continuous replacement coverage or an appropriate extended reporting period.
An extended reporting period concerns earlier work, not new work after expiry. Some extensions require the claim to be made before expiry. Ask the broker to check the actual terms before relying on it.