Master and Group Policies

Lloyd's Requirements and Guidance

What is the scope of Lloyd’s Requirements and this Guidance?

Lloyd’s Requirements and this Guidance apply to: “an insurance policy which has been purchased in order to provide the benefit of insurance coverage to others”.

Lloyd’s Requirements and this Guidance are designed to address the risks associated with arrangements that demonstrate this core characteristic.

Lloyd’s Requirements and this Guidance therefore apply equally to policies commonly referred to as group policies or group schemes as they do to master policies. While differentiations may be made between these three types of arrangement in the market and across different territories, arrangements that demonstrate this core characteristic will be in scope for Lloyd’s Requirements and Guidance.

The definition of a master/group policy for the purposes of these Requirements and Guidance has been considered in detail.

Read our guidance on the definition of a master/group policy (including examples)

For ease of reference throughout the Requirements and Guidance we use the term “master/group policy” to refer to an arrangement meeting the above definition. We refer to the master or group policyholder as a “master/group policyholder” and to the end Customer that has the benefit of the cover under the master/group policy as the “Customer”.

Purpose of the requirements

The Requirements seek to mitigate the following risks that may arise from the poor management and oversight of master/group policies:

Customer detriment – our Requirements seek to ensure that products and services provide fair value and that good customer outcomes are achieved, specifically for example that:

Customers are aware of the cover that is in place;
Customers know how to make a claim;
claims are not handled by an entity with a vested interest in the outcome of the claim;
complaints are handled correctly; and
Customers are not disadvantaged by shared aggregates or deductibles.

Lack of underwriting controls – when a master/group policy is used where a coverholder arrangement should be in place there is not only a breach of Lloyd’s Requirements but also a lack of oversight and control of underwriting by a third party.

Breaches of local rules and regulations – while master/group policies, or their equivalent, are recognised in most territories they are subject to different local regulations. Poor management and oversight pose a risk that local regulations will not be correctly applied.

Further information

Requirements and Guidance

Find Lloyd’s Policy Level and Procedural Requirements for the writing of master/group policies.

Find out more

FAQs

Read our most frequently asked questions.

Find out more

Master/Group Policy Referrals

Find out about applying to the Customer Oversight Team for an exemption from the Policy Level Requirements.

Find out more

When is a policy not a master/group policy?

Find guidance on the definition of a master/group policy, examples of different types of master/group policies and questions to ask yourself.

Find out more

Lloyd’s Master/Group Policy Level Requirements Checklist

Find a simple checklist to help in determining whether an arrangement meets the Policy Level Requirements.

Find out more

Master/Group Policy E-learning

Find out more about Lloyd’s master/group policies e-learning module.

Find out more