Terms of Use

Acceptance Of Terms

By using this website, you acknowledge your agreement to the following terms and conditions, without limitation or qualification. Please read these terms carefully. These Terms of Use may be changed, modified, supplemented, or updated at any time, with or without advance notice. You agree to be bound by any such modifications. It is your responsibility to visit the link at the bottom of the Berkley Financial Specialists home page periodically to review the most current terms and conditions.  If you do not agree with these Terms of Use, you should immediately stop using this website.

This website is owned and maintained by Berkley Financial Specialists (“we”, “us,” or “our”), of the W. R. Berkley Corporation member companies (collectively, the “Company”). The following terms and conditions apply to all users of this website, though we may choose to add to or supersede certain provisions herein with other provisions located in other parts of this website. You further acknowledge that the current Terms of Use, Online Privacy Policy, and other policies posted on this website constitute the entire agreement between you and Berkley Financial Specialists in connection with your use of this website, and the content and software herein.  You represent and warrant that any information you provide via the website or electronic mail is true and accurate to the best of your knowledge. You acknowledge that the information you may enter into any on-line application is material to any decision by the underwriting company to issue a policy, and that any decision to issue a policy would be made in reliance upon the sufficiency and accuracy of the information entered into the application.

Disclaimer

To the fullest extent permissible pursuant to applicable law, the materials and software on this website are provided on an “as is” or “as available” basis and without warranties of any kind, either express or implied.  Berkley Financial Specialists disclaims all warranties, express or implied, including, but not limited to, any implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. Berkley Financial Specialists does not warrant that the website’s functions will be uninterrupted, non-infringing, or error-free, that any such defects will be corrected, or that this website or the server that makes it available are free of viruses or other harmful components. 

All information on this website, including all [surveys, benchmark reports, educational materials, risk reports, and/or actuarial analysis and reports], is for general informational purposes only, and is not offered as legal, accounting or other professional advice. 

The descriptions of Berkley Financial Specialists’ products and services on this website, including any sample forms or wordings, are not necessarily intended to be complete descriptions of all applicable terms, exclusions, and conditions and are provided solely for general informational purposes. Any statement regarding insurance coverage herein is subject in all respects to the specific terms and conditions of the actual applicable policy or product or service agreement. Complete policy terms are available upon request.

While Berkley Financial Specialists uses reasonable efforts to include accurate and up-to-date information on this website, errors or omissions sometimes do occur. Berkley Financial Specialists does not warrant or make any representations regarding the use or the results of the use, of any of the materials on this website in terms of their correctness, accuracy, reliability, or otherwise. Planning tools on this website, including [the online quoting and rating system, loss run reports, and/or calculators], are available only as a convenience to users and are not intended to generate advice or recommendations upon which a user may rely. Berkley Financial Specialists does not warrant or make any representations regarding the correctness, accuracy, or reliability of the results generated by any such tools, and makes no guarantee that the results shown will be achieved. These tools and calculators are not part of any planning report for which you may have paid a fee, even if they utilize data derived from or contained in such a report.  Some states do not allow the disclaimer of implied warranties, so the foregoing disclaimer may not apply to you if you are a resident of any such state. You may also have other legal rights that vary from state to state.

Limitations Of Liabiltiy

To the fullest extent permissible pursuant to applicable law, you understand and agree that under no circumstances, including, but not limited to, negligence, shall [Operating Unit] or the Company be liable to you for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or punitive damages that result from the use of, or the inability to use, the materials on this website, even if Berkley Financial Specialists or the Company or an authorized representative of Berkley Financial Specialists or the Company has been advised of the possibility of such damages.  Berkley Financial Specialists also assumes no responsibility, and shall not be liable for, any damages to, or viruses that may infect, your computer equipment or other property as a result of your access to, use of, or browsing of this website or your downloading of any materials, data, text, images, video, or audio from this website.  Some states do not allow the limitation of liability, so the foregoing limitation may not apply to you.

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Berkley Financial Specialists and the Company from and against any and all losses, liabilities, expenses, damages, and costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees and court costs, arising or resulting from your use of this website or any violation of these Terms of Use. If you cause a technical disruption to the website or the systems transmitting the site to you or others, you agree to be responsible for any and all losses, liabilities, expenses, damages, and costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees and court costs, arising or resulting from that disruption.  Berkley Financial Specialists reserves the right, at its own expense, to assume exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you and, in such case, you agree to cooperate with Berkley Financial Specialists in the defense of such matter.

Third Party Content

This website may contain hyperlinks to other websites which are not owned or maintained by Berkley Financial Specialists.  Berkley Financial Specialists is not responsible for the content or privacy practices of such websites.  These hyperlinks are provided solely for your convenience, and do not imply Berkley Financial Specialists’ approval or endorsement of such sites or the content therein.   We do not control such websites, and assume no responsibility for their content or accuracy, even though Berkley Financial Specialists’ name or logo may appear on certain pages of such third party sites.  We accept no liability for any information, products, advertisements, content, services, or software accessible through such third party websites or for any action you may take as a result of linking to any such website.  We recommend that you carefully read the privacy policies and user agreements of these sites, which will solely govern your use thereof.

Ownership Of Information

With the exception of personal data (which shall be maintained in accordance with our Online Privacy Policy), any information you transmit to Berkley Financial Specialists via this website, by electronic mail, direct entry, submission, or otherwise, including data, questions, comments, or suggestions, will be treated as non-confidential and non-proprietary and will become the property of Berkley Financial Specialists.  Such information may be used for any purpose, including, but not limited to, reproduction, solicitation, disclosure, transmission, publication, broadcast, and posting.  Berkley Financial Specialists shall be free to use any ideas, concepts, know-how, or techniques contained in any communication you send to Berkley Financial Specialists via this website or by any other means for any purpose whatsoever, including, but not limited to, developing and marketing products using such information.  Berkley Financial Specialists may modify or discontinue any of the materials, content, or software, or any portion thereof, that appears on this website at its discretion, with or without notice. Neither Berkley Financial Specialists nor the Company will be liable to you or any third party for the effects of any such modification or discontinuance.

Consent To Communicate Electronically

By utilizing or providing your contact details through the Berkley Financial Specialists website, you are consenting to receive communications from us electronically.  You acknowledge that electronic communications may not be encrypted and there is a risk that data, including e-mail, electronic and wireless communications and personal data, may be accessed by unauthorized third parties.  We may communicate with you by e-mail or by posting notices on this site.  You agree that all agreements, notices, disclosures and other communications that we provide to you electronically satisfy any legal requirement that such communications be in writing.

Users who do not wish to be contacted electronically may revoke this consent by notifying [email protected].

Restrictions On Use Of Materials

This website is owned and operated by Berkley Financial Specialists.  Except where otherwise indicated, all materials and software contained in this website, as well as their collection, arrangement, and assembly, are the copyrighted property of Berkley Financial Specialists or the Company and are protected by U.S. and international copyright laws.  No materials from this website may be copied, reproduced, republished, uploaded, posted, transmitted, distributed, or otherwise commercially exploited in any way, except with the express written consent of Berkley Financial Specialists.  You may download material displayed on this website for your personal use only, provided that you do so without alteration, for non-commercial purposes only, and that all copyright and other proprietary notices appear in all copies in the same manner as the original. All other uses are prohibited.

You may not distribute, modify, transmit, reuse, repost, or use the content of this website for public or commercial purposes, including the text, images, audio, and video, without Berkley Financial Specialists’ prior written permission.  We neither warrant nor represent that your use of materials displayed on this website will not infringe rights of third parties.  

You are prohibited from: (i) using this website for any unlawful, unauthorized, fraudulent, or malicious purpose; (ii) using this site in a method that could damage, disable, overburden, or impair any server, or any network connected to a server; (iii) interfering with another person’s use and enjoyment of this website; (iv) using data mining, robots, or similar data gathering and extraction tools with respect to any portion of the website; (v) gaining  unauthorized access to accounts, computer systems, or networks connected to any server or systems; or (vi) accessing materials, systems, data, or information not intended by Berkley Financial Specialists to be accessible to you or through any means not intentionally made available by Berkley Financial Specialists.

In addition, in using this website, you agree you will not: (i) upload or transmit any material that is unlawful, harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, tortious, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, libelous, or otherwise objectionable, or that may invade another’s right of privacy or publicity; (ii) create a false identity for the purpose of misleading others or impersonate any person or entity, including but not limited to any Company representative, or falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity; (iii) upload or transmit any material that you do not have a right to reproduce, display, or transmit under any law or under contractual or fiduciary relationships (such as nondisclosure agreements); (iv) upload or introduce files that contain viruses, trojan horses, worms, time bombs, cancel-bots, corrupted files, or any other similar software or programs that may damage the operation of another’s computer or the property of another; (v) upload or transmit any unsolicited advertising, promotional materials, “junk mail,” “spam,” “chain letters,” “pyramid schemes” or any other form of solicitation, commercial or otherwise; (vi) violate any applicable local, state, national, or international law or regulation; (vii) upload or transmit material that infringes any patent, trademark, service mark, trade secret, copyright, or other proprietary right of any party; or (viii) harvest or otherwise collect information about others, including e-mail addresses.

Berkley Financial Specialists reserves the right to take any lawful action it deems appropriate in response to any actual or suspected violations of these terms, including but not limited to the suspension or termination of the user’s access to the website and/or account. Berkley Financial Specialists may cooperate with legal authorities and/or third parties in the investigation of any suspected or alleged crime or civil wrong. Except as expressly limited by the Online Privacy Policy, we reserve the right to disclose any information that we deem necessary to satisfy any applicable law, regulation, legal process, or governmental request, or as otherwise permitted by law.  We also reserve the right to edit, remove, or refuse to post any materials or information, in whole or in part, at our sole discretion.

Trademarks

All trademarks, service marks, trade names, logos, and icons are proprietary to Berkley Financial Specialists and/or the Company.  This proprietary information includes the website’s domain name, logos, page headers, graphics, and/or button icons. Use of the trademarks, service marks, trade dress, or other logos displayed on this website, without prior written authorization of Berkley Financial Specialists or as otherwise provided herein, is strictly prohibited.

Proprietary Of Software

Any software accessible through this website is the property of Berkley Financial Specialists, the Company, or outside suppliers, and is protected by U.S. intellectual property laws and/or international treaties.  Use of this software other than to utilize and navigate this website for its intended functions is prohibited, and you agree not to access this website’s content by any means other than the interface Berkley Financial Specialists has provided.  You agree not to copy, distribute, publicly display, alter, modify, decompile, disassemble, or reverse engineer or otherwise attempt to discover the source code of this software.  Berkley Financial Specialists does not authorize the downloading or exportation of any software or technical data from this website to any jurisdiction where such activity is prohibited by export laws and regulations.  Accordingly, you shall not copy, transfer, or export this software in violation of any applicable export laws and regulations.

Passwords And Security

Berkley Financial Specialists requests that you do not send it any information that you consider to be confidential or proprietary through this website or by email.  You acknowledge that there is a risk that information provided through the website may be accessed by unauthorized third parties because such information is not encrypted [(except where explicitly indicated otherwise)].  Please note that if you do send us any such information or material, we will assume it is not confidential.  By sending us information or material, you grant Berkley Financial Specialists an unrestricted, irrevocable license to use, reproduce, display, perform, modify, transmit, and distribute this material or information, and you also agree that Berkley Financial Specialists is free to use any ideas, concepts, know-how, or techniques that you send us for any purpose.

Users may provide confidential or proprietary information where this website explicitly asks for such information and in the secure manner provided.  In these circumstances only will such information be encrypted, and any such information received will be handled in accordance with this website’s Online Privacy Policy.

You acknowledge that you must have an authorized username and password to access portions of this site.  You agree to provide true, accurate, current, and complete information about yourself.  You also agree not to impersonate any person or entity, misrepresent any affiliation with another person, entity, or association, use false headers, or otherwise conceal your identity from us for any purpose.  You authorize Berkley Financial Specialists to process any and all account transactions initiated through the use of your username and password.  For your protection and the protection of our other customers and website users, you may not share your username and passwords with any other person for the purpose of facilitating their access and unauthorized use of this website.  You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your username and password. You acknowledge and agree that you are responsible for any unauthorized activities, charges, damages, and/or liabilities made through the use of your username and password. In no event will Berkley Financial Specialistse or the Company be liable for the unauthorized use or misuse of your username or password.  If you do share your account information with anyone, we will consider their activities to have been authorized by you.

You agree to (a) immediately notify Berkley Financial Specialists of any unauthorized use of your account or any other breach of security of which you become aware, and (b) exit completely from your account at the end of each online session.  Berkley Financial Specialists and the Company will not be liable for any losses that you may incur as a result of someone else using your password or account, either with or without your knowledge. However, you could be held liable for losses incurred by Berkley Financial Specialists or another party resulting from someone else’s use of your account or password. You may not use anyone else’s account at any time, with or without the permission of the account holder.

Portions of this website which must be accessed using a password may contain proprietary and confidential information owned by Berkley Financial Specialists, including but not limited to information included in web-based seminars, industry data, and technical and marketing information (“Berkley Financial Specialists Confidential Information”). By accessing Berkley Financial Specialists Confidential Information, you agree to keep this information confidential and to use the information solely for the purpose of maintaining your account and conducting business with Berkley Financial Specialists.

You also agree to be careful with this information, and to disclose it to other employees within your company solely on a “need to know” basis. Such employees shall be instructed and agree not to disclose Berkley Financial Specialists Confidential Information and not to use it for any purpose not permitted by these Terms of Use. You will not alter, decompile, disassemble, reverse engineer, or otherwise modify any Berkley Financial Specialists Confidential Information that you receive.

Privacy Policy

Our website Privacy Policy describes Berkley Financial Specialists’ collection, use, and protection of nonpublic personal information obtained from users of this website.  This Privacy Policy will help you to understand how we secure and protect the information we collect, and we urge you to read it.

Surplus Lines Products

Certain products described in this website may be underwritten by U.S.-based surplus lines insurers.  Consequently, these products are sold on a surplus lines basis only, which means that they are available only through properly licensed excess and surplus lines brokers and in accordance with applicable surplus lines laws.

Surplus lines insurance is intended to meet customer needs for high risk and specialized insurance products not available from the conventional market. Surplus lines products are offered only by ‘non-admitted’ insurance companies which are not licensed to dobusiness inthe states in which their products are sold. Surplus lines carriers do not generally participate in state guaranty funds and thus insureds are not protected by such funds.

In keeping with regulatory restrictions affecting surplus lines products, the information provided in the non-password protected sections of this website relating to surplus lines products constitutes neither a solicitation to purchase nor an offer to sell surplus lines insurance products and services, but is for general information purposes only and is not an offer to sell or a solicitation to the general public. Any password-protected sections of this website related to surplus lines products are accessible by properly licensed surplus lines insurance professionals only and contain information for products that may not be available in all states.  [Inquiries should be directed to your local licensed surplus lines insurance broker.]

Jurisdictional Issues

Except as expressly stated herein, the information contained on this website is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any security, insurance product, or other product or service by Berkley Financial Specialists or the Company.  No security, insurance product or other product or service is offered or will be sold by Berkley Financial Specialists or the Company or, if sold by such entity, will be effective in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, purchase, or sale would be unlawful under the securities, insurance, or other laws of such jurisdiction.  Those who choose to access this website do so by their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws.  Unless otherwise expressly set forth herein, Berkley Financial Specialists makes no representation that the materials on this website are appropriate or available for use in any location.  Due to various insurance and other regulatory restrictions, certain products and services described on this website may vary by jurisdiction and may not be available in or suitable for all jurisdictions.  Further, we make no representation that materials on this website are appropriate for use outside the United States, or that access to this website’s content is legal in all countries and/or territories.  You may not use this website or export its materials in violation of United States export laws and regulations.  Please contact a designated representative of Berkley Financial Specialists or your broker to find out which products and services are available to you in your jurisdiction.

Safe Harbor Statement. This website may from time to time contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (U.S.), which provides a statutory “safe harbor” for forward-looking statements.  Any written or oral statements made by or on behalf of the Company reflect current views with respect to future events and financial performance.  These forward-looking statements are subject to uncertainties and inherent risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement.  Please refer to W. R. Berkley Corporation’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including the most recent Forms 10-K and 10-Q, and any Forms 8-K since the most recent Form 10-K, for further information on such uncertainties and inherent risks and the “safe harbor” under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

New York Confidentiality Protocols for Victims of Domestic Violence and Endangered Individuals.  New York Insurance Law Section §2612 prohibits insurers from taking certain actions against a person solely on the basis that he/she is a victim of domestic violence and requires insurers to establish certain confidentiality protocols for these individuals.  Specifically, this law states that if a victim of domestic violence covered by an insurance policy delivers to the insurer that issued the policy, a valid order of protection against the policyholder or other person covered under the same policy, the insurer is prohibited for the duration of the order from disclosing to the policyholder or other covered person the address and telephone number of the victim, or of any person providing covered services to the victim.  If the victim is a child, then the confidentiality rights established by this law also extend to the parent or guardian of the child.

If you are a victim of domestic violence and are covered by an insurance policy issued by us, you may provide us with an alternate address, telephone number or other method of contact.  If you have a valid order of protection against another person covered by the same insurance policy issued by us, then you may provide us with a copy of the order, asking that we not disclose your contact information to such other person.

Any alternate contact information or order of protection may be sent to us by sending that information to the following address:

Compliance Department
Berkley Financial Specialists
901 Dulaney Valley Road, Suite 708
Towson, Maryland 21204

For additional information, you may also contact the New York State Domestic Violence Hotline at (800) 942-6906.

Choice Of Law

These Terms of Use are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware[1] and controlling United States federal law without regard to any conflicts of law provisions, unless such law cannot be applied in a particular jurisdiction under prevailing applicable law.  Unless a dispute would be governed by the arbitration clause below, you agree to submit to the personal and exclusive jurisdiction of the courts located within the City of Baltimore and County of Baltimore, Maryland.  If any provision herein is deemed by a court of competent jurisdiction to be unlawful or unenforceable, it will not affect the validity and enforceability of the remaining provisions. The section headings are for convenience only and do not have any force or effect.

Agreement To Arbitrate

Any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to these Terms of Use or use of this website shall be settled by binding arbitration in accordance with the commercial arbitration rules of the American Arbitration Association, except that, to the extent you have in any manner violated or threatened to violate Berkley Financial Specialists or another member of the Company’s intellectual property rights, we may seek injunctive or other appropriate relief in any state or federal court in Maryland, and you consent to exclusive jurisdiction and venue in such courts. Any such controversy or claim shall be arbitrated on an individual basis, and shall not be consolidated in any arbitration with any claim or controversy of any other party. You agree that the arbitration shall be conducted in Towson, Maryland and that any action to enforce this arbitration provision will be brought in the federal or state courts located in Maryland. Either you or Berkley Financial Specialists may seek any interim or preliminary relief from a state or federal court of competent jurisdiction in Maryland, as may be necessary to protect the rights or property of you or Berkley Financial Specialists pending the completion of arbitration. You agree that, if you are not the prevailing party in such arbitration, you will bear its cost.

Updates

Berkley Financial Specialists reserves the right to change these Terms of Use in order to address future developments of Berkley Financial Specialists, the Company, or the website, or changes in industry or legal trends.

Last updated:  April 25, 2014



[1] Unless conducting business solely in one State.

Berkley Financial Specialists logo

Berkley Financial Specialists, a member company of W. R. Berkley Corporation, is dedicated to providing customized, comprehensive insurance solutions and outstanding personalized service to financial institutions. We offer specialized management liability and fidelity coverages.

For more information, visit: BerkleyFS.com.

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