Insurance Loss Runs

Insurance loss runs are detailed claims history reports issued by an insurance carrier for a specific policy. They list every claim filed during the policy period — including the date of loss, a description of the incident, the amount the carrier has paid, and any remaining open reserves. Loss runs are one of the most critical documents in commercial insurance underwriting because they give the prospective carrier a factual record of the risk's claims experience.

Why Loss Runs Matter for Independent Agents

Loss runs are the single biggest bottleneck in the commercial quoting process. A business owner calls wanting to shop their insurance. The agent collects the application information, identifies target carriers, and is ready to submit — but nothing moves until the loss runs arrive. Most carriers will not quote commercial accounts without 3-5 years of loss history from prior carriers. No loss runs, no quotes.

The challenge is timing. The prior carrier is required to provide loss runs upon request, but there is no universal standard for how quickly. Some carriers return them in 48 hours; others take 2-4 weeks. When a client's renewal date is 30 days out and the prior carrier takes three weeks to produce loss runs, the agent has barely a week to get competitive quotes — which often means fewer carrier options and less negotiating leverage.

Agents who manage the loss run process proactively retain more accounts and close more new business. Best practices include requesting loss runs the moment a prospect or renewal is identified, following up persistently, and setting client expectations about the timeline upfront. Some agencies request loss runs 90 days before renewal as standard practice, which gives them the maximum quoting window.

How Loss Runs Work

What loss runs contain:

• Policy information — Policy number, named insured, policy period, line of business, and limits
• Claim details — Date of loss, claim number, claimant name (or description), cause of loss, and current status (open or closed)
• Financial data — Total paid to date (indemnity and expense), outstanding reserves, and total incurred (paid plus reserves)
• Valuation date — The date through which the financial data is current

Who requests them:

The insured or their authorized agent requests loss runs from the current or prior carrier. Most carriers accept requests via their agent portal, email, or a dedicated loss run request form. Some require a signed authorization from the insured before releasing loss runs to a new agent.

How carriers use them:

Underwriters review loss runs to assess claims frequency and severity. A commercial account with zero claims in five years is a very different risk than one with three general liability claims totaling $200,000. Underwriters look at:

• Frequency — How many claims? Multiple small claims can signal ongoing operational issues.
• Severity — How large were the claims? A single $500,000 workers' comp claim tells a different story than five $5,000 claims.
• Trends — Are claims increasing or decreasing over time?
• Open reserves — Large outstanding reserves on open claims suggest the full cost of the risk is not yet known.
• Claim types — The nature of the claims matters. A restaurant with multiple slip-and-fall claims has a different risk profile than one with a single grease fire claim.

For workers' compensation specifically, loss run data feeds into the experience modification rate (EMR) calculation, making accurate and timely loss runs essential for premium accuracy across multiple policy years.

Common issues agents encounter:

Prior carriers sometimes delay loss run requests, particularly when they know the account is being shopped. While this is not supposed to happen, agents should be prepared to escalate through the carrier's account management team or have the insured contact the carrier directly. In some states, regulations specify maximum turnaround times for loss run requests.

Loss runs with large open reserves can be misleading if the reserves are stale — set conservatively early in a claim and never adjusted downward as the claim resolved favorably. Agents should ask the underwriter whether they can provide context on claims that appear worse on paper than their actual outcome.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are insurance loss runs? Insurance loss runs are claims history reports issued by an insurance carrier, listing every claim filed on a policy during a specified period. They include claim dates, amounts paid, and current reserve status — and are required by most carriers before quoting commercial renewals or new business.

Why do carriers require loss runs? Carriers use loss runs to assess the risk's claims frequency and severity before deciding whether to quote and at what price. A business with frequent or large claims is a higher risk than one with a clean loss history. Without loss runs, an underwriter cannot accurately price the account or determine whether it falls within the carrier's appetite.

How long does it take to get loss runs? Turnaround times vary by carrier, but agents should expect 3–10 business days in most cases. Some carriers return them within 48 hours through an agent portal; others can take 2–4 weeks if the request requires manual processing. In many states, carriers are required by regulation to respond to loss run requests within 10 business days.

What if a business has no prior insurance? Carriers treat a gap in coverage or no prior insurance as an underwriting concern — it raises questions about why the business was uninsured and what exposures existed during that period. Most carriers will require a signed statement of no prior insurance from the insured, and some may apply a surcharge or limit available coverage options until a claims history can be established.

Related Terms

• Commercial Insurance Underwriting — Loss runs are a core input to the underwriting process that determines whether a carrier will quote and at what price
• Insurance Submission Process — Loss runs are a required component of most commercial submissions alongside the application and supplemental forms
• Experience Modification Rate (EMR) — For workers' comp, loss run data is the foundation of the EMR calculation that directly impacts premium