Glossary

Weighted average cost of capital is the sum of the required market returns of each component of corporate capitalization, weighted by that component's share of the total capitalization.

Weighted average loss forecasting predicts future losses by assigning a greater weight, typically to more recent years, when developing a forecast of future losses. Recent years receive greater weight because they tend to more closely approximate current conditions (e.g., benefit levels, nature of company operations, medical expenses).

Welfare and pension plan bond coverage, usually added by rider to a fidelity bond, protects funds and property in employee welfare and pension plans against loss by reason of acts of fraud or dishonesty on the part of administrators, officers, and employees of such plans. Bonding is required to safeguard these funds under the terms of the Federal Welfare and Pension Plans Disclosure Act. A guideline of 10 percent of the aggregate amount of funds handled, subject to a $1,000 minimum and a $500,000 maximum, is generally used to establish the required amount of coverage.

A wellness program is a program initiated by an employer to promote a healthy lifestyle by employees.

Wet methods refer to processes of spraying water into a production process to reduce dusts and other airborne particulate matter in the working environment with the goal being to keep employees from inhaling polluted air. The use of these methods is often more economical and safe than requiring workers to constantly wear respiratory equipment. Wet methods are often used in large plants that manufacture fertilizer, cement, and other powdered products.

Wharfinger legal liability coverage is a type of marine insurance that affords coverage to a wharf or pier owner-operator for the liability exposures encountered in the course of business. The policy provides care, custody, and control coverage to the owner-operator for the damage to vessels and the vessels' cargo while moored at the owner-operator's facility for which the owner-operator is legally liable.

A whistleblower claim asserts that an employee was penalized (e.g., terminated, demoted, disciplined) for complaining of or opposing certain employer actions (e.g., fraudulent billing practices on a government contract), refusing to engage in illegal or unethical conduct, or exposing such conduct via testimony at a trial or administrative hearing. Whistleblower claims are a type of retaliation claim and are covered by employment practices liability insurance policies.

The whistleblower provision is a key provision within the Dodd-Frank Act that requires the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to award whistleblowers a payment equal to 10 to 30 percent of the proceeds (recovered from corporations that violate US securities laws) based on information provided by the whistleblower. Significantly, the SEC will not provide awards for such information unless it produces actual monetary recoveries. Where the SEC recovers at least $1 million, a reward to eligible whistleblowers must be between 10 and 30 percent of the aggregate monetary penalties obtained by the SEC and other US governmental entities, in any related actions. The SEC retains broad discretion in calculating the actual amount of the award. The factors that are considered in arriving at the amount include the significance of the information provided; the extent of the assistance provided; whether the whistleblower made use of a company's internal compliance function; whether the individual's actions put them in danger; whether the whistleblower encouraged others to assist the SEC; and the extent to which the whistleblower participated in the offense. The whistleblower provision also includes a number of so-called anti-retaliation measures that are designed to protect employees (and others) who report various types of corporate malfeasance. In addition to the heightened exposures created by whistleblowers' reports to the SEC, corporate directors and officers are also likely to face more numerous securities class action claims as a result of the whistleblower provision. This is because plaintiffs' attorneys are expected to "harvest" a number of the more egregious tips provided by whistleblowers and then use the information associated with such tips as the basis for bringing securities class action claims.

Whistleblower statutes are laws that protect employees from retaliatory actions by their employer when the employees report violations of law by their employer. In addition to federal statutes, many states also have passed laws prohibiting an employer from firing or otherwise retaliating against an employee for disclosing an unfair or illegal practice by the employer. Employment practices liability policies cover so-called whistleblower claims, whereby an employee asserts that they were retaliated against for whistleblowing.

White hat hackers refer to hackers tasked with finding "holes" in cyber security at certain companies and informing such companies about how they may take action to resolve the security flaws. In contrast to black hat hackers, white hat hackers do not have malicious intent and instead intend to provide beneficial "insider information" from a hacker's perspective so that companies may adjust their security accordingly and prevent breaches or other forms of cyber attacks. While many white hat hackers have informed companies of such vulnerabilities without any expectation of monetary reward, other companies have taken the step of offering money or other "prizes" for those who are able to detect and report previously unknown security issues.