The Registered Professional Liability Underwriter (RPLU) Program
March 2001
This article explains the RPLU professional
designation program sponsored by the Professional Liability Underwriting Society
(PLUS), including the purpose, content, and history of the program.
by Robert A. Bregman
IRMI
The Registered Professional Liability Underwriter (RPLU) program is a professional
designation program sponsored by the Professional Liability Underwriting Society
(PLUS).
Nature and Purpose of the Program
The curriculum leading to the RPLU designation is recommended for individuals
active in the field of professional liability insurance. The required course
of study addresses technical issues from a practical point of view, including:
insurance coverage, the underwriting process, legal aspects, claim management,
and the marketing/sales of professional liability insurance. After successfully
passing the 5 required exams and satisfying the 3-year experience requirement,
candidates are eligible to receive the RPLU designation.
More than 2,000 industry professionals, including general agents, brokers,
underwriters, claims examiners, and risk managers are enrolled in the RPLU program.
These candidates, along with the 551 holders of the RPLU designation, are employed
by organizations ranging from insurance companies and brokerage houses to law
firms and reinsurers.
Program Content
The program consists of five parts:
Part I: General and Excess Liability Insurance. This part introduces the candidate to commercial general liability (CGL)
insurance coverage, especially as it relates to professional liability. Subject
areas include: the CGL policy, occurrence coverage triggers, insured status,
CGL policy exclusions, limits of insurance, policy conditions, CGL endorsements,
miscellaneous general liability coverage, umbrella liability insurance, classification
and rating, and reinsurance.
Part II: Professional Liability Insurance. This part examines professional liability insurance coverage, underwriting professional
liability exposures, claims management, and the professional liability insurance
market. Subject areas include: the professional liability exposure, directors
and officers liability, healthcare professional liability, common features of
professional liability policy forms, and professional liability coverage triggers.
Part III: Professional Liability: Non-Medical.
The number of professions outside the healthcare field that are exposed to professional
liability claims is growing. Subject areas include analysis of the professional/errors
and omissions (E&O) exposures and coverage required for: accountants, lawyers,
architects and engineers, media firms, public officials, insurance agents, and
miscellaneous professionals.
Part IV: Professional Liability: Medical. Various
types of healthcare professional liability exposures and coverage are explored
in this part of the program. Subject areas include: hospitals, physicians, allied
healthcare professionals, managed care organizations, and the directors and
officers of healthcare institutions. In addition, the medical professional liability
insurance market and medical professional liability claims management are addressed.
Part V: Directors and Officers/Fiduciary Liability
Insurance. The final part of the program examines three major areas:
directors and officers (D&O), fiduciary, and employment practices liability.
The specific exposures and coverage aspects of nonprofit firms and financial
institutions are studied in this course, as is D&O claims management.
RPLU Examinations
Each of the 5 parts consists of 9 to 12 reading assignments. There is a national
examination for each part of the RPLU Program. Examinations consist of 75 multiple-choice
questions and are 2 ½ hours in length. Examinations, which are given in May
and December each year, are administered in most major metropolitan areas as
well as in Toronto, London, and Puerto Rico. In addition, it is anticipated
that beginning in 2001, computer-based testing will be implemented. The plan
is to offer RPLU exams on numerous dates at more than 300 locations in the United
States and Canada. This will afford candidates a better opportunity to customize
their study programs, in accordance with work and personal schedules.
Upon successful completion of all five RPLU examinations, the candidate is
eligible to receive the Registered Professional Liability Underwriter (RPLU)
professional designation.
Waivers for the RPLU I Examination
Part I of the RPLU program may also be satisfied by passing one of the following:
the CPCU part 4 examination (administered by the American Institute for CPCU),
AU 63 or AU 66 (administered by the Insurance Institute of America), or the
casualty section of the Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) program. Part I
may also be satisfied by holding any of the following degrees or designations:
AU, CIC, ARM, CPCU, CRM, AAII, Fellow of the Insurance Institute of Canada,
CAIB, AIC, ACII, FCII, a B.S. degree with a major in insurance, a masters degree
in insurance, or a JD degree with appropriate work experience.
History of the RPLU Designation
Since the first RPLU exam was administered in March 1993, PLUS has awarded
551 RPLU designations to professionals in the United States, Canada, and Europe.
In the past 7 years, more than 5,000 exams have been administered. Currently,
approximately 2,000 students are enrolled in the RPLU program.
At the annual PLUS conference in San Antonio in November 2000, the Professional
Liability Underwriting Society honored 80 RPLU designees at a conferment ceremony.
In addition to the designees in attendance, another 50 candidates received the
RPLU designation in 2000 for a total graduate population of 130.
For Additional Information about the RPLU Program
For more information, contact Mary Rasmussen, PLUS Education Director, at
1-800-845-0778 or go to the PLUS Web site at http://www.plusweb.org/.
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