What Are Loss Runs, and How Do You Request Them for Renewal?

Loss runs are reports from your insurer or claims administrator showing the claims recorded against your business insurance policies. You request them through the insurer, its portal, or your broker so prospective underwriters can review your claims history at renewal. Underwriters often ask for three to five years, but the required history and report freshness depend on the insurer, coverage, and business.

What information does a loss run report show?

A loss run typically identifies your policy, lists reported claims, and shows their status and financial amounts as of a stated date. Formats vary, so check the column definitions rather than assuming every carrier presents the same information.

The valuation date is the date through which the report reflects claim information, not the policy's expiration date. An older policy can have a newly valued report because its claims may still be developing.

• Policy details: Your insured business name, policy number, coverage type, and policy period help establish which part of your history the report covers.
• Claim details: Claim numbers, loss dates, descriptions, and open or closed status identify individual events. An open claim is still active in the insurer's system; it does not necessarily mean nothing has been paid.
• Paid amounts: These show payments already made, with loss payments and claim expenses sometimes listed separately.
• Reserves are estimates of amounts still expected to be paid on a claim. They can change and are not settlement offers or commitments.
• Incurred losses generally combine paid amounts and outstanding reserves. Check whether a total includes claim expenses before comparing reports.

Why do underwriters often want three to five years?

Several years of loss runs help underwriters distinguish an isolated event from a recurring pattern and assess how older claims have developed. A single clean year does not explain a history of repeated injuries, vehicle collisions, or water damage.

Underwriters look at both frequency, meaning how often claims happen, and severity, meaning how costly they are. They also need context: an expanding business may have more employees, vehicles, or properties exposed to loss than it did several years ago.

Five years is not a universal requirement. One insurer may request three years, another four or five, and a particular program may want more. Ask your broker to confirm the required policy periods, whether the current term must be included, and the acceptable valuation date for each market.

Claims history is only part of the decision. Your operations, requested coverage, and other commercial insurance premium drivers also matter; clean loss runs do not guarantee a quote or a lower price.

How do you request loss runs for your business?

Send a written request to each insurer or claims administrator responsible for the policies you need, or ask your broker to coordinate it. If you changed carriers during the requested period, collect reports from the prior carriers too.

Start with your policy records and map each coverage to its insurer and dates. Review your full business insurance program rather than collecting workers' compensation reports and assuming they also document liability or property claims.

Include the following in your request:

1. Named insured: Use the legal business name shown on the policy, with prior names or relevant entities where needed to locate records.
2. Policies and years: List all relevant policy numbers, coverage types, and exact policy periods, including the current term if requested.
3. Current valuation: Ask for newly generated, currently valued reports for every requested period, including expired policies.
4. No-loss periods: Request currently valued reports showing no claims for any insured periods with no recorded losses.
5. Delivery: Confirm the insurer's or administrator's request channel, recipient, secure delivery method, and available file format.
6. Authorization: Ask whether written permission is needed for your broker to obtain the reports, and provide the required authorization.

Keep the request and acknowledgment in your renewal file. Give one person responsibility for tracking missing reports, following up, and confirming that the response covers everything requested.

Do you need loss runs if you have never filed a claim?

You may still need insurer-issued loss runs when you have no claims because the underwriter needs documented history, not just your recollection. Ask for reports confirming no recorded losses under the applicable policies as of a current valuation date.

A missing year, an uninsured year, and an insured year without claims mean different things. A missing report leaves the history unverified; an uninsured period has no insurer-issued claims record for that coverage; a no-loss report documents what the insurer has recorded for an insured period.

If your business is new or previously operated without the requested coverage, explain that history accurately. Ask which alternative information the underwriter will accept, such as an account of prior incidents, rather than labeling unavailable years as claim-free or creating a substitute carrier report.

What should you check before sending reports to underwriters?

Check that the reports are complete, current, and accurate, then add context for significant or recurring losses. Your goal is a reliable submission, not a version of the history that looks better than the carrier's records.

• Match insured names, policy numbers, coverage types, and dates against your policy list. Explain gaps and partial policy periods.
• Review open claims with your broker and claims contact. Ask about status, recent payments, and the basis for reserves without assuming the reserve should be reduced.
• Flag unfamiliar claims or apparent errors to the issuer. Request a corrected report rather than editing the original yourself.
• Describe corrective action with specifics: what changed, when it changed, and what documentation supports it. A completed inspection program is more useful than an unsupported promise that a loss will never recur.

Keep carrier reports separate from your explanatory notes and share sensitive claim details only with people who need them. A brief factual explanation can clarify a loss, but it does not remove it from the record.

When should you request and refresh loss runs?

Request the initial set when renewal preparation starts, then confirm whether the underwriter needs an updated set before coverage is bound. Waiting until quotes are due leaves less time to recover missing years or correct discrepancies.

Ask your broker to work backward from the renewal date and each insurer's submission requirements. A report acceptable at the start of marketing may need refreshing near binding, especially if a claim opens, closes, or changes materially.

Keep the newest reports organized by coverage and policy period, and tell your broker about new developments after the valuation date. If a request stalls, follow up through the insurer's designated channel and ask your broker about escalation; response requirements vary, so do not assume a single nationwide deadline.

Where does a broker fit in?

A broker helps define the required history, coordinate requests, and present accurate claim context to underwriters. Velora Risk Partners brings that work into renewal and risk advisory planning so the reports support your coverage decisions rather than become last-minute paperwork.

If you are preparing for renewal, start a conversation about the records your business needs and the questions worth resolving before submission.

Frequently asked questions

Are loss runs the same as a certificate of insurance?

No. A loss run reports claims recorded under an insurance policy, including claim status and financial information as of its valuation date. A certificate of insurance summarizes specified coverage information. If an underwriter asks for your claims history, sending a certificate does not replace the requested insurer-issued loss runs.

Can you request loss runs from a former insurance company?

Yes. Request reports from each former insurer that covered the policy periods the new underwriter needs. Include the insured business name, policy numbers, and coverage dates, and ask for a current valuation. Your broker can help coordinate requests, although the insurer may require your written authorization before releasing records to someone else.

Can a new business get insurance without five years of loss history?

A new business can be considered for insurance without five years of loss history, but acceptance depends on the insurer and coverage. State when operations began and provide whatever prior insurance or incident information actually exists. Ask the underwriter what alternative documentation is needed; do not describe years before the business existed as insured, claim-free years.

Does an open reserve mean the insurer will pay that amount?

No. An open reserve is an estimate of future claim costs, not a settlement commitment or coverage guarantee. The estimate can change as the insurer receives more information, and final payments may differ. When reviewing a loss run, distinguish amounts already paid from outstanding reserves and ask the claims contact to explain unfamiliar entries.

Can you reuse the loss runs collected at your last renewal?

You can use older loss runs to identify policies and prepare new requests, but they may not meet the next underwriter's freshness requirements. Even an expired policy can have changing claim information. Ask for current valuations across the requested history and confirm whether another update is needed before binding the new coverage.