Glossary

A hedge instrument is a derivative contract used to reduce (offset) volatility in asset values.

A hedging transaction is a derivative transaction that is entered into and at all times maintained to reduce (1) the risk of economic loss due to a change in the value, yield, price, cash flow, or quantity of assets or liabilities that the insurer has acquired or incurred or anticipates acquiring or incurring, or (2) the risk of economic loss due to changes in the currency exchange rate or the degree of exposure as to assets or liabilities denominated in a foreign currency that an insurer has acquired or incurred or anticipates acquiring or incurring.

Hemp is a strain of the Cannabis sativa plant cultivated for industrial use. Many commercial items are made from hemp, including paper, clothing, food, and building materials. In 2018, Congress passed the Agriculture Improvement Act, defining hemp, partly, as "the plant Cannabis sativa L. and any part of that plant ... with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not more than 0.3 percent on a dry weight basis."

A high-risk community is one located within the vicinity of numerous sites of facilities or other potential sources of environmental exposure/health hazards that may result in high levels of exposure to contaminants or pollutants.

Highly protected risk (HPR) property is property that is judged to be subject to a much lower than normal probability of loss, due to low hazard occupancy or property type, superior construction, special fire protection, and management commitment to loss prevention. Insurers that specialize in insuring HPR property are referred to as "HPR insurers."

The Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) is a nonprofit research organization that publishes insurance loss statistics on most automobile, SUV, pickup truck, and motorcycle models on US highways. Sponsored by the automobile insurance industry, HLDI publishes comprehensive analyses of losses under several insurance coverages: (1) collision, (2) comprehensive, including theft, (3) bodily injury (BI) liability, (4) property damage (PD) liability, (5) personal injury protection (PIP), and (6) medical payments. The database includes more than 150 million individual passenger vehicles, which is about 80 percent of all privately insured vehicles on the road. An affiliated organization is the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

"Hired automobile" (or "hired autos") is used in the Insurance Services Office, Inc.(ISO), business auto, garage, and motor carrier coverage forms to denote a particular type of auto included as a covered auto under the policy. With certain exceptions, the term refers to autos the named insured leases, hires, rents, or borrows. As respects both the business auto and the garage policy, the term does not include any auto the named insured leases, hires, rents, or borrows from any of its employees, partners, limited liability members, or members of their households. As respects the motor carrier, the exception applies as respects private passenger type autos only.

Historical cost is the price paid to acquire an item of real or personal property. Historical cost is not usually a reliable indicator of insurable value.

A holding power formula indicates the maximum dollar amount of incurred losses that can be sustained under a specific retrospective rating plan without triggering additional premiums at any adjustment period.

A hold harmless agreement is a provision in a contract that requires one contracting party to respond to certain legal liabilities of the other party. For example, construction contracts typically require the contractor to indemnify the owner with respect to the owner's liability to members of the public who are injured or whose property is damaged during the course of the contractor's operations. There are a number of types of hold harmless clauses, differentiated by the extent of the liabilities they transfer. The most commonly used types of clauses are the "broad," "intermediate," and "limited" form hold harmless clauses. Limited form—Where Party A holds Party B harmless for suits arising out of Party A's sole negligence. Party B is thus protected when it is held vicariously responsible for the actions of Party A. Intermediate form—Where Party A holds Party B harmless for suits alleging sole negligence of Party A or negligence of both parties. Broad form—Where Party A holds Party B harmless for suit against Party B based on the sole negligence of A, joint negligence of A and B, or the sole negligence of B. Broad form hold harmless agreements are unenforceable in a number of states.