Liberty Mutual Surety, a unit of Liberty Mutual Insurance Co., will be offering subcontractor default insurance coverage beginning this fall and has appointed former Aon PLC construction executive Douglas Schrift as chief underwriting officer to lead its development. Subcontractor default insurance is a two-party catastrophic insurance coverage that protects general contractors from losses due to a subcontractor’s failure to perform during a project, Liberty Mutual said in a statement issued Aug. 12. Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, Mr. Schrift will report to Fran McGrath, chief credit officer for contract surety at Liberty Mutual Surety, according to the statement. “The booming construction market, a shortage of skilled labor, and competitive margins are causing large contractors to seek ways to protect their multi-year projects against subcontractor default,” Mr. McGrath said in the statement. “By offering the product, Liberty Mutual is better able to meet the full risk management needs of contractors, from surety and subcontractor default insurance to primary, excess and specialty coverages,” he said. Mr. Schrift was previously managing director for Aon’s construction services group subcontractor default insurance practice and, prior to that, vice president and director of risk finance for Lend Lease Americas, the legacy operation of Bovis Lend Lease.
The surety group of Liberty Mutual Insurance will launch consumer default insurance coverage this autumn , in response to demand from large US companies seeking financing for multi - year projects . Liberty Mutual insurance said coverage will include surety and subcontractor default insurance , as well as primary , excess and secondary coverages .