Beazley vs Lockton: Commercial Crime Insurance

Lockton places crime and fidelity as a brokered program, with a dedicated claims team inside its broking team; Beazley underwrites commercial crime up to an advertised $25 million, with underwriters and claims staff working side by side.

Van Ness Partners presents a practical comparison of source materials relevant to financial crime exposures.Research updated 2026-09-25

What Are the Key Differences Between Beazley and Lockton Crime Insurance?

Insurer Claims Staff vs Broker Claims Advocates

Beazley underwrites its Commercial Crime policy and says its underwriting and claims staff work side by side, so the policy's original intent is respected at claim time. Lockton doesn't issue policies; it places crime and fidelity cover with insurers it doesn't name, and its Professional & Executive Risk Claims team, with claims counsel inside the broking team, advocates for you with that insurer. Choose Beazley if you need limits up to $25 million and want to deal directly with the insurer that pays the claim; choose Lockton if you want a broker to compare insurers and argue your claim for you. [1] [4]

Commercial Companies vs Financial Institutions

Beazley's Commercial Crime is for ordinary commercial companies; banks and other financial institutions go to its separate Financial Fidelity Bonds. Lockton notes that financial institutions are often required to carry a financial institution bond, and flags small businesses as especially exposed because they often lack fraud-prevention and audit resources. If you're a financial institution, neither firm's commercial crime product is the right starting point. [1] [4]

Wire Fraud Conditions and Covered Losses

Both address employee theft, forgery, computer fraud, counterfeit currency and social-engineering fraud. Beazley adds client-property loss and in-transit loss, and conditions its fraudulent-instruction cover on out-of-band verification of payment instructions; it says insureds with documented controls can remove that condition for an extra premium. Lockton's page lists claim types, not policy conditions, so you'll see any verification requirement only in the insurer's quote. [1] [4]

What Should You Confirm in Beazley and Lockton Crime Insurance Quotes?

  • If you're a financial institution, ask whether you need a financial institution bond or Beazley's Financial Fidelity Bonds rather than commercial crime. [4] [1]
  • Ask Lockton which insurer and limit it proposes; its page names neither. [4]
  • Ask Beazley for your quoted limit and retention, since $25 million is the advertised maximum and retentions aren't published. [1]
  • Check whether your payment process meets the out-of-band verification condition on social-engineering cover. [1]

Beazley writes the crime policy itself, with limits up to $25 million and wire-fraud cover that requires out-of-band payment verification; Lockton is a broker that shops your crime and fidelity cover and puts its own claims counsel on your side if you have a loss.

Sources consulted

  1. 01
    Crime and Fidelity

    Beazley · What we offer: Commercial Crime for commercial companies; fraudulent-instruction/social-engineering insuring agreement and out-of-band authentication condition; Limits up to US $25,000,000; How can we help; Tools & Resources application forms · accessed 2026-09-23

  2. 02
    Commercial Insurance Guide

    California Department of Insurance · Crime · accessed 2026-09-16

  3. 03
    Social Engineering Fraud Insurance

    Chubb · Opening; coverage highlights · accessed 2026-09-16

  4. 04
    Crime and Fidelity Insurance

    Lockton · What is Crime and Fidelity Insurance?; Who needs to purchase Crime and Fidelity Insurance?; Types of Crime and Fidelity claims; Claims management · accessed 2026-09-23

  5. 05
    Crime Terms and Conditions

    The Travelers Companies, Inc. · I.A–G, printed/PDF pages 1–4; III.RR, printed/PDF p.13; V.B.1–2, printed/PDF pp.18–20; Consideration, printed/PDF p.1; III.P p.8; V.A.3 pp.16–17; V.A.4 p.17; V.B.3 p.20; I.A.3 p.1; III.C p.7; III.S pp.8–9; III.II and III.KK p.12; III.QQ p.13; V.A.5 pp.17–18 (printed/PDF pages); IV.J–O, printed/PDF pages 14–15 · accessed 2026-09-16

  6. 06
    Crime Non-Financial Applications and Forms

    Travelers · Opening paragraph; Sample Policy Forms · accessed 2026-09-16

  7. 07
    Commercial Crime Coverage Application

    Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America · I–III pages 1–2; IX–XI pages 3–4; V–VII, printed/PDF pages 2–3 · accessed 2026-09-16

Crime coverage

Beazley

  • role: Beazley underwrites Commercial Crime insurance for commercial companies. The same product page separately describes Financial Fidelity Bonds, a related but distinct product line for financial institutions. Crime and Fidelity product page; distinguishes the commercial-company product from the financial-institution fidelity bond described on the same page.company-reportedSource ↗
  • eligibility: Beazley markets Commercial Crime to ordinary commercial companies, not to banks or other financial institutions, which it addresses separately through Financial Fidelity Bonds. Product page target-customer language; no industry list or size threshold is published.company-reportedSource ↗
  • coverage: Beazley says Commercial Crime protects an organization from loss of money and securities caused by theft by its own employees, plus third-party-related losses such as forgery or alteration, on-premises and in-transit loss, money-order and counterfeit-currency fraud, computer fraud, client-property loss, credit-card fraud and related expense coverage. Product-page description of insuring agreements; exclusions, conditions and available sub-limits appear only in the issued policy.company-reportedSource ↗
  • coverage: Beazley says its Commercial Crime policy includes a fraudulent-instruction (social-engineering) insuring agreement covering losses from wire transfers made on instructions from someone posing as a vendor, client or authorized employee, and that this cover is conditioned on out-of-band authentication of payment instructions. Product-page description; Beazley says the out-of-band-authentication condition can be removed for insureds with documented controls and response plans, subject to an additional premium.company-reportedSource ↗
  • limits: Beazley advertises Commercial Crime limits of up to US $25,000,000. The page does not publish retentions, sub-limits by insuring agreement, or a minimum limit. Product-page headline limit figure; the page does not split the figure between Commercial Crime and Financial Fidelity Bonds.company-reportedSource ↗
  • services: Beazley says its underwriting and claims professionals for this line work side by side so that, when a claim arises, the original underwriting intent of the policy is respected. Company-stated internal process description; no independent claims-handling outcome data is provided.company-reportedSource ↗
  • application: Beazley lists a standalone Crime application, a Massachusetts-specific Crime application and a separate Social Engineering application among its Tools & Resources, distinct from the Financial Fidelity Bond application forms on the same page. Tools & Resources section of the product page; the page does not describe an online quote or self-service purchase flow.company-reportedSource ↗
  • claims: The product page links to Beazley's general claim-notification channel for this line. It does not disclose a claims response-time commitment or a dedicated claims-handling process specific to Commercial Crime. Product page "Notify a Claim" link as read on 2026-09-23; response times were not found.not-disclosedSource ↗

Lockton

  • role: Lockton places Crime and Fidelity insurance to protect businesses against financial losses from theft, fraud, forgery and embezzlement by employees or third parties; it describes this as a brokered program, not a policy Lockton underwrites. Crime and Fidelity product page as read 2026-09-23.company-reportedSource ↗
  • eligibility: Lockton says crime coverage is relevant to nonprofit, private and public organizations of any sector, and calls out small businesses as particularly exposed because they often lack fraud-prevention and auditing resources. It also notes financial institutions are frequently required to carry a financial institution bond, distinct from general crime coverage. Crime and Fidelity product page as read 2026-09-23.company-reportedSource ↗
  • coverage: Lockton lists the claim types a crime and fidelity program is meant to address: employee theft, forgery or alteration of negotiable instruments, theft on or off premises, computer fraud, counterfeit currency, and social engineering (impersonation) fraud involving customers, vendors or employees. Product page as read 2026-09-23; a capability/claim-type list, not a specimen policy.company-reportedSource ↗
  • claims: Lockton says its Professional & Executive Risk Claims team, which integrates insurance and claims counsel within the broking team rather than treating claims advocacy as a separate profit center, handles Crime and Fidelity claims. Product page as read 2026-09-23. Describes Lockton's advocacy role, not an insurer's claim-paying obligation.company-reportedSource ↗
  • insurer: The page does not name the insurers Lockton places crime and fidelity coverage with. Crime and Fidelity page checked 2026-09-23.not-disclosedSource ↗

Contact Van Ness Partners to discuss controls, exposures and insurance options.

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