insurance questions deal teams actually ask.
Seventeen short guides for QoE teams, sponsors, capital partners, operating partners, and companies that buy other companies.
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By Nick McClish, Managing Partner · Reviewed Oct 27, 2026 · Or see the acquisition checklists.
For QoE teams and buyers
Insurance in the quality of earningsIn a quality of earnings review, insurance shows up three ways: recurring cost, hidden risk, and one-time items. Here’s where each one belongs.6 min readFor independent sponsors
Independent sponsor insurance workstreamOn an independent sponsor deal, insurance is its own workstream from the letter of intent through day 100. Here’s who owns each step.5 min readFor buyers and deal counsel
Reps and warranties insurance by deal sizeUsage rises with deal size, deals with a policy average smaller escrows, and cost as a share of enterprise value falls as the deal gets larger.12 min readFor platforms and add-ons
R&W insurance for add-on acquisitionsEach add-on needs its own deal protection. The platform policy insures the platform purchase agreement, not the next seller's representations.5 min readFor capital partners
Insurance memo for capital partnersBefore a capital partner funds an independent sponsor deal, it wants a short insurance memo. Findings should be in dollars, with an owner and a date for every open item.8 min readFor operating partners
Add-on insurance integrationBefore an add-on closes, compare the target’s operations and claims to the program, read each policy’s acquisition clause, and get insurer confirmation in writing.5 min readFor operating partners
Operating partner 100-day insurance planThe first 100 days turn the closing binder into a program the company and the sponsor can run. Deadlines in the policies, the credit agreement, and customer contracts still control.9 min readFor buyers and CFOs
Workers’ comp experience mod after an acquisitionBefore the seller’s workers’ comp cost goes into the model, find out whether the loss history combines, stays, or is excluded. The purchase label does not answer that.7 min readFor sponsors and directors
D&O coverage for sponsor board designeesA board seat at a portfolio company is not, by itself, proof of D&O coverage. The policy has to cover the designee in the capacity that produced the claim.8 min readFor independent sponsors
Management liability for independent sponsorsAn independent sponsor raises capital deal by deal. The sponsor's own fundraising and oversight are a different exposure from the company's directors and officers policy.4 min readFor sponsors and funds
Choosing an insurance broker for a PE portfolioChoose for the work the portfolio actually generates: lender endorsements, board-designee coverage, ownership-change reporting, and a renewal calendar. Price comes after licensing, conflicts, and who already serves the company well.6 min readFor CFOs and sponsors
Insurance went up at the first renewal after buying a businessThe first renewal after an acquisition is usually the first time an insurer prices the business you own, on numbers you supplied, instead of the seller’s last application. Two things often arrive together: a renewal quote and an audit bill for the policy that just ended.8 min readFor sponsors selling a company
Exit-ready insurance and the D&O tailAt exit, the sponsor becomes the seller. Buyers will ask what the business costs to insure, what claims follow it, and what changes at closing. Directors who sat for the sponsor will need a tail that still works after the company is gone.10 min readFor serial acquirers
Insurance for acquisitive companies and holding companiesThe first acquisition teaches you what the target’s insurance looks like. By the third, the problem is different: policies with different renewal dates, entities that may or may not be insured, tails nobody is tracking, and a workers’ comp mod that moved without a warning. This page is for the CFO or corporate development lead who wants one way of doing it every time.9 min readFor QoE teams and sponsors
Pro forma and run-rate insurance cost in an acquisitionThe seller’s insurance expense is a historical number. The pro forma number is what the program costs once you own the business, at today’s payroll, revenue, and vehicles, with the limits your lender and capital partners require.7 min readFor buyers and deal counsel
Open litigation in insurance due diligenceEvery open lawsuit raises three money questions in a deal: which policy answers it, how much the company still pays before and beside that policy, and who carries the rest after close.8 min readFor sponsors and lenders
Limits and deductibles in insurance due diligenceA limit is the most a policy will pay. A deductible or retention is what the company pays first. In a deal, both are cash questions: how much protection is actually left, and how much risk the company is already carrying.7 min read