While the dramatic growth in RWI in recent years was driven primarily by private equity, corporate buyers have implemented transactional risk insurance with increasing frequency in the last eighteen months. Yet, due diligence for corporate buyers can be different from PE purchasers and many corporate dealmakers are still in the dark about the RWI underwriting process. In this episode, Bryan and Gena are joined by Nick Tuliebitz, Co-Head of M&A Insurance North America at AssuredPartners, for the end all be all discussion about what corporate acquirers must know about RWI and how corporate buyers can have a successful RWI underwriting experience.

Topics reviewed include:

• Why a corporate buyers should “know before you go” and be strategic about RWI early on in the deal process

• What type of due diligence RWI carriers expect

• How corporate buyers can minimize policy exclusions

• The importance of planning for specific due diligence workstreams -- notably tax and underlying insurance

• Preparing for the RWI underwriting call -- “a call to arms”

• Critical “dos and donts” for corporate buyers on the underwriting call

• “Follow-ups and Wrap-ups” -- what the corporate buyer can expect post-underwriting call

• Nick’s favorite Thanksgiving tradition

With an emphasis on technology and efficiency, io.insure recently launched Mio, a new global RWI underwriting platform for SME deals. In this episode, Bryan and Gena are joined by David Rogers, the co-founder of io.insure, for a discussion about this innovative approach to underwriting RWI.

Topics reviewed include:

• How Mio uses technology to offer a streamlined RWI underwriting process for up to $100 million dollar deals

• How Mio can still provide a more “traditional” underwriting process for insureds that prefer this approach

• Using the platform for real estate deals through its Rio product

• The reaction from insureds and brokers since the launch

• What David would do if he won Powerball

Building on its incredible growth since its formation in early 2020, Dual Transaction Solutions is now launching a stand-alone tax insurance product. In this episode, Bryan and Gena are joined by Yash Jafari, Senior Vice-President Tax at Dual Transaction Solutions, for a discussion on Dual’s latest transactional risk offering.

Topics reviewed include:

• The “three buckets” of tax risks that Dual finds attractive to underwrite in today’s market

• How the IRS’s renewed focus on enforcement will impact the tax insurance product

• The use of tax insurance for carbon credits under the Inflation Reduction Act

• The tax underwriting approach that Dual will use -- combining a strong technical expertise with practicality, innovation, and creativity

• Yash’s personal favorite section of the Code

Continuing with our “career theme,” Bryan and Gena are joined by Heith Rodman, Vice-President and Transactional Risk Underwriter at Berkley Transactional, for a discussion on making the career jump from M&A counsel at an international law firm to transactional risk underwriter at Berkley.

Topics discussed included:

• Heith’s background as a long-time M&A attorney at Jones Day in Atlanta

• Why Heith made the transition from M&A attorney to transactional risk underwriter

• The biggest differences between working as M&A counsel and underwriting RWI

• The information deficiency that transactional risk underwriters face

• The aspects of the RWI process that matter most to M&A attorneys

• Heith’s career advice for other M&A attorneys that are interested in joining the RWI industry

• How many times Heith has visited the Coca-Cola museum

Founded by brothers Dave and Ken DeBerry, Concord Specialty Risk was the true pioneer in the RWI space and one of the original carriers offering the product. With Ken’s recent retirement, Bryan and Gena are joined by his successor, Rustin Paul. Topics discussed included:

• How Rustin intends to build on Concord’s proud heritage to grow in a competitive RWI marketplace

• The one critical question that Concord underwriters ask when deciding how to value a risk

• Concord’s pragmatic approach to underwriting, including areas of heightened concern in deals -- and areas of lesser concern as well

• Why Concord is moving towards a 90 minute underwriting call

• We put Rustin on the spot in a discussion around boxing

RWI coverage for healthcare deals has evolved -- years ago, healthcare transactions were generally difficult to insure; now, multiple RWI markets offer attractive coverage options and competitive rates. Still, healthcare deals have unique features that carry additional risk for insurers and can result in a more robust due diligence process before the policy is bound. In this episode, Bryan and Gena are joined by Jonathan Sprintz, Managing Director at Blue Chip Underwriting, to talk about utilizing RWI in healthcare transactions.

Topics discussed include:

• The historic use of RWI on healthcare deals

• How the RWI marketplace has evolved to provide better coverage options 

• Certain types of healthcare transactions and specific facets of deals where

RWI coverage is still challenging

• The scope of due diligence that carriers expect Buyers to provide to obtain RWI coverage, including with respect to specialized topics such as billing and coding

•Current pricing and retentions on healthcare deals

2021 was a historical year for RWI. Carriers and brokers placed more RWI policies than ever before. Premiums rose, reflecting the available supply and demand for the product. Multiple new carriers jumped into the North American market. But after an incredible 2021, what lies ahead in 2022 is an open question. Can RWI continue its winning streak, or do more ominous days lie ahead? To answer this question and many more, Bryan and Gena are joined by Aartie Manansingh, Managing Director at Willis Towers Watson. Topics discussed included:

• Recap of the 2021 year and analysis of the opening moments of 2022

• Whether premiums are likely to remain elevated in 2022

• The prospect of more insurance carriers entering the North American market

• How existing insurance carriers are challenged by human capital deficiencies

• The most likely “hot areas” for RWI in 2022

Continuing our trend of how RWI can be successfully utilized in cross-border transactions, to kick-off 2022, Bryan and Gena are joined by John Antonecchia and Sean Flinn of BFL Canada’s M&A and Risk Management Practice, to discuss the current state of RWI in our neighbor to the north. Topics discussed included:

• The development of the M&A practice at BFL Canada.

• Latest update on premiums for Canadian policies.

• Key similarities and differences between RWI policies in Canada and the United States.

• The types of transactions that most frequently utilize RWI in Canada.

• The number of insurance carriers currently offering RWI in Canada.

• Why more US insurance markets should consider expanding into Canada.

Perhaps no innovation better exemplifies the entrepreneurial spirit of transactional risk insurance than the development and growth of tax insurance. This niche product allows the insured to protect against known tax risks in a variety of areas—S corp status, energy credits, REITS, permanent establishment, estate tax, and independent contractor misclassification, to name a few. What’s more, tax insurance can be utilized in both the deal context as well as a stand-alone product for individual taxpayers. To better understand how to effectively use tax insurance and the current state of the tax insurance market, Bryan and Gena are joined by Michael Saitta, Tax Underwriting Counsel at Liberty Global Transaction Solutions, to discuss:

• How tax insurance is similar to and different from traditional representations and warranties insurance.

• The type of risks that tax insurance can—and cannot—protect against.

• The present state of the tax insurance market.

• The tax insurance underwriting process.

• How tax insurance is priced and other key insurance policy elements such as policy limits and retentions.

Continuing our podcast series on career paths in RWI, Bryan and Gena are joined in this latest episode by Thomas Bonfiglio, Senior Vice President, Transactional Risk Practice, CAC Specialty, for an illuminating discussion on the pros and cons of working as a transactional risk insurance broker versus a transactional risk insurance underwriter. Tom draws on his long career as both an underwriter at Concord Specialty Risk and his prior broker position with Aon and now at CAC to provide valuable advice about the advantages and disadvantages of each field. Specific topics include:

• How Tom’s undergraduate training in risk management has informed his career in transactional risk insurance

• How Tom has succeeded as both an underwriter and broker without a law degree

• The challenges facing underwriters in today’s red-hot deal environment

• How brokers can play a critical role in bridging the divide between the insurer and the insured

• The personality traits that he has found are most important for each position