Beazley launches new liability policy for SME media in US

Specialist insurer  Beazley has launched a new occurrence media liability policy covering the risks faced by small to medium-sized media outlets and publishers in the US.

The policy will provide professional indemnity cover written on an occurrence basis, with limits of up to $5 million on a worldwide basis. It will cover various professionals including publishers, broadcasters, authors / journalists, bloggers, vloggers, social influencers and content creators, as well as advertising producers and advertising agencies.

The coverage focuses on defamation, libel & slander and infringement of copyright & trademark and includes a raft of other content-related exposures, as well as unintentional breach of contract with a client, and mitigation costs (sub-limited) to minimize claims escalation.

The policy will also provide optional coverage for technology errors & omissions; information security and privacy; and bodily injury or property damage arising out of the publication of content.

Angela Weaver, Beazley’s global head of media liability, said: "The U.S. media sector is undergoing substantial changes, with the launch of new channels for publishing and broadcasting and the growing reach of bloggers, vloggers and social influencers. Freelance publishers and start-up media ventures ought to be aware that they are as liable as traditional, established media groups for the content and materials they publish or share. They face a range of exposures including defamation, intellectual property and privacy and should consider the precautions and cover they need to protect themselves against potential claims.”

“Many media businesses are diversifying and will undertake contracts for services as well as publishing or broadcasting content. Our new policy explicitly defines the breach of contract cover as well as more traditional media liability.”