How to Get Your Loss Runs (and Why Every Malpractice Submission Needs Them)

If you are shopping for medical malpractice insurance—especially after a claim, non-renewal, or premium increase—one of the first documents an underwriter will request is your loss-run report.

Not having complete, current loss runs is one of the most common reasons a malpractice submission stalls. An application may be fully completed and the physician may otherwise qualify, but an underwriter cannot properly evaluate a claims history that has not been documented.

The solution is straightforward: identify every carrier that insured you during the requested period, submit a written request to each one, review the reports carefully, and pair each significant claim with a concise factual narrative.

This guide explains exactly how to get malpractice loss runs, what they should contain, and how to resolve the problems that commonly delay a quote.

What Is a Medical Malpractice Loss-Run Report?

A loss run is an insurance carrier’s official summary of the claims and reported incidents associated with your malpractice policy.

Depending on the carrier and report format, a malpractice loss run may identify:

• The physician or medical entity insured;
• Policy numbers and coverage periods;
• Dates on which incidents allegedly occurred;
• Dates on which claims were reported;
• Claimants or internal claim-reference numbers;
• General allegations or claim descriptions;
• Whether each matter is open or closed;
• Indemnity payments made to resolve claims;
• Defense expenses paid by the carrier;
• Open reserves, when the carrier provides them; and
• The date on which the report was valued or generated.

A loss run is not the same as your personal recollection, a claims questionnaire, a National Practitioner Data Bank report, or a narrative written by your attorney. It is generated from the insurance carrier’s own claims records.

It is also not necessarily the complete claim file. Investigation reports, attorney evaluations, privileged communications, medical records, and internal carrier documents are generally separate from the loss-run statement.

Why Do Malpractice Underwriters Require Loss Runs?

Underwriters use loss runs to verify the claims history disclosed on your insurance application and evaluate the likelihood and potential severity of future claims.

They are not simply counting lawsuits. An underwriter may examine:

• Frequency: How many incidents or claims were reported?
• Recency: How much time has passed since the most recent event?
• Severity: Were substantial payments made or significant reserves established?
• Pattern: Do multiple claims involve similar procedures, allegations, or operational failures?
• Status: Are the matters dismissed, settled, tried, or still open?
• Practice changes: Does the physician still perform the procedure involved?
• Consistency: Do the loss runs agree with the application and claim narratives?

One isolated claim over a long career may be evaluated differently from several recent claims involving similar allegations. Likewise, an old closed matter with a known payment creates less uncertainty than an open claim with an unresolved outcome.

Learn more about how carriers evaluate difficult claims histories in our complete guide to malpractice insurance for physicians with prior claims.

If you recently experienced a claim, also read Can You Get Medical Malpractice Insurance After a Claim?

How Far Back Should Your Loss Runs Go?

Requirements vary by insurer, specialty, claims history, and type of account. Many medical malpractice underwriters request loss runs covering the previous five to ten years.

For more complicated risks, the carrier may request:

• Ten years of loss history;
• Loss runs from every carrier during that period;
• Loss runs for both the physician and the medical entity;
• Separate reports for different states or practice locations;
• Reports from former employers or group policies; or
• Additional documentation for specific claims.

Do not submit only your current carrier’s report if another company insured you during the requested period.

For example, suppose you were insured by Carrier A from 2018 through 2021, Carrier B from 2021 through 2024, and Carrier C from 2024 through the present. A complete 10-year submission may require reports from all three carriers—not simply Carrier C.

What Does “Currently Valued Loss Runs” Mean?

Underwriters commonly ask for currently valued loss runs. This means the reports were generated recently enough to reflect the carrier’s current information.

An older report may show a claim as open even though it has since been dismissed. It may omit a later settlement, payment, closure, or other material development.

Ask the underwriter or broker how recent the reports must be. Depending on the carrier, loss runs generated within the previous 30, 60, or 90 days may be requested.

Do not alter an old report or manually update its numbers. Request a new version from the carrier.

How to Get Malpractice Loss Runs: Step by Step

Step 1: Create a list of every prior carrier

Begin by reconstructing your malpractice insurance history for the requested period.

Review:

• Prior declarations pages;
• Insurance invoices;
• Renewal documents;
• Certificates of insurance;
• Employment agreements;
• Credentialing files;
• Old emails from agents or carriers; and
• Tax or accounting records showing premium payments.

Create a simple timeline listing the carrier, policy number, named insured, effective dates, practice entity, and agent or broker.

Step 2: Contact the carrier’s designated department

Start with the carrier’s policy-services, underwriting, claims, customer-service, or loss-run department. Some insurers offer a request form or allow policyholders to generate reports through an online portal.

You may also contact the agent or broker who handled the policy. However, some carriers will release loss runs only after receiving a request or signed authorization directly from the insured.

If you were covered through an employer or medical group, determine whether:

• You were individually named on the policy;
• The loss history is maintained under the group’s name;
• The employer must authorize release; or
• The carrier can issue an individual physician history.

Step 3: Make the request in writing

A written request creates a record of the date, scope, delivery instructions, and person making the request.

Include:

• Your full legal name and professional credentials;
• Any previous names used professionally;
• The legal name of the medical practice or entity;
• Policy numbers, if available;
• Every applicable policy period;
• The requested loss-history period;
• A request for currently valued loss runs;
• A request for both open and closed matters;
• Your preferred secure delivery method; and
• A signed authorization, if required.

Step 4: Use this loss-run request template

Step 5: Request a no-loss statement when appropriate

If you had no reported claims with a carrier, ask for a loss run showing zero claims or a formal no-known-loss statement.

Underwriters generally want documentation covering the entire requested period. Silence from one carrier does not prove that the period was claim-free.

Step 6: Track every request

Record:

• The carrier;
• The date requested;
• The method used;
• The person or department contacted;
• Any confirmation number;
• Whether authorization was submitted; and
• The expected delivery date.

Follow up in writing if the report is not received within the applicable time.

How Long Does It Take to Receive Loss Runs?

Timing varies by carrier and jurisdiction. Some carriers provide loss runs through an online portal within a few days. Others require a signed form, identity verification, or manual review.

For Florida policies, state law generally requires authorized and surplus-lines insurers to provide a loss-run statement within 15 calendar days after the carrier’s designated recipient receives the insured’s written request.

Florida law generally requires the statement to cover the preceding five years with that insurer—or the complete history if the relationship lasted less than five years. Insurers must provide one compliant statement annually without charging a preparation fee.

However, Florida law does not require an insurer to disclose loss-reserve information. An underwriter may therefore request additional claim-status information when evaluating an open matter.

Review the applicable provisions:

• Florida Statute §627.444 — Loss Run Statements
• Florida Statute §626.9202 — Surplus-Lines Loss Run Statements

Do not wait until the final week before renewal. Even if each carrier responds promptly, collecting reports from multiple companies and resolving discrepancies can take time.

Common Loss-Run Problems—and How to Fix Them

A previous carrier is missing

Compare the effective and expiration dates of every policy. If the timeline contains a gap, search old certificates, credentialing records, invoices, employment files, and emails.

If coverage was supplied by an employer, staffing company, hospital, or medical group, contact its risk-management or human-resources department.

The former agent is no longer available

Contact the insurance company directly. Your prior agent may help locate the correct department, but the carrier is the source of the official report.

The carrier merged or changed names

Identify the successor company or current claims administrator. State insurance regulators, old policy documents, or your former broker may help determine who maintains the records.

The carrier is insolvent or no longer operating

Contact the state insurance department, receiver, guaranty association, or claims administrator identified in the insolvency proceedings. Tell the prospective underwriter what steps you took and provide alternative records while you continue searching.

The report contains incorrect information

Do not edit the loss run yourself. Send a written correction request to the issuing carrier, identify the disputed item, and provide supporting documentation when appropriate.

If the carrier will not change the report immediately, disclose the discrepancy to the new underwriter and provide the carrier correspondence. Hiding the conflict is worse than explaining it.

Your recollection differs from the carrier’s report

Use the carrier’s official status and payment information unless corrected by the carrier. Your narrative can explain disputed allegations, but it should not contradict established dates, claim status, or payment information without supporting evidence.

An open reserve is missing

Some loss runs do not disclose reserve information, and Florida law does not require carriers to provide it. Ask whether the carrier can provide a separate claim-status letter, updated valuation, or other permitted confirmation.

Never guess at an open reserve.

The report belongs to a group rather than the physician

Ask the group and carrier whether they can issue an individual physician loss history or a letter identifying the claims associated with you. The prospective underwriter may also accept a complete group report when accompanied by an explanation of which matters involve the applicant.

What Should You Submit With Your Loss Runs?

A loss run supplies dates and numbers. It rarely explains the complete clinical or operational story.

For each significant claim, prepare a concise narrative addressing:

• The date and type of treatment involved;
• Your role in the patient’s care;
• The claimant’s principal allegation;
• The alleged injury or damages;
• Other providers involved;
• The current claim status;
• The result, if resolved;
• Any payment shown on the loss run;
• Whether you still perform the procedure involved; and
• Specific risk-management changes implemented afterward.

Keep the narrative factual, concise, and consistent with the official record. Do not attack the patient, blame another provider, minimize a payment, or speculate about an unresolved case.

When appropriate, coordinate with defense counsel before discussing an open claim. Do not disclose privileged legal strategy or unnecessary protected health information through unsecured email.

Complete Loss Runs Can Strengthen a Difficult Submission

Loss runs do not guarantee that a carrier will offer coverage. They do, however, give an underwriter the verified information needed to reach a decision.

A strong malpractice submission may include:

• A completed and internally consistent application;
• Currently valued loss runs from every relevant carrier;
• A factual narrative for each significant claim;
• The current declarations page;
• The non-renewal or denial notice, if applicable;
• A current curriculum vitae;
• Procedure and patient-volume information;
• Licensing or board documentation when relevant; and
• Evidence of specific risk-management improvements.

If your renewal was declined, review what physicians can do after a malpractice renewal decline.

If another carrier has already turned you down, see Denied Malpractice Insurance: What to Do Next.

Frequently Asked Questions About Malpractice Loss Runs

What is a malpractice loss run?

A malpractice loss run is an insurance carrier’s official report of the policy periods and claims associated with an insured physician or medical entity. It may include claim dates, status, paid losses, defense expenses, and other information maintained by the carrier.

How far back do malpractice loss runs need to go?

Many underwriters request five to ten years of loss history. The exact period depends on the prospective carrier, specialty, claims history, and practice. Obtain reports from every insurer that provided coverage during the requested period.

How do I obtain loss runs from a former carrier?

Contact the former carrier’s policy-services, underwriting, claims, customer-service, or loss-run department. Submit a written request identifying the physician, practice entity, policy numbers, policy periods, requested date range, and delivery instructions.

Can my insurance agent request loss runs for me?

Often, but not always. Some carriers accept requests from the agent of record, while others require a signed authorization or direct request from the insured. Confirm the carrier’s procedure.

How long does it take to get loss runs?

Carrier processing times vary. For applicable Florida policies, authorized and surplus-lines insurers generally must provide the statement within 15 calendar days after the designated recipient receives the insured’s written request.

Are insurance carriers required to disclose open reserves?

Not necessarily. Florida’s loss-run statutes specifically state that an insurer is not required to provide loss-reserve information. A prospective underwriter may request additional claim-status documentation.

What if I had no claims?

Request a zero-loss report or no-known-loss statement covering the relevant policy periods. Underwriters may still require carrier-issued documentation confirming the absence of reported claims.

Can I change incorrect information on a loss run?

Do not modify the carrier’s document. Request a correction from the issuing carrier and preserve the written correspondence. Explain unresolved discrepancies transparently to the prospective underwriter.

Samuel Bennett
Licensed Insurance Agent
sam@islandinsurancegroup.com
954-804-8144

This article provides general insurance information and is not legal advice. Insurance requirements, document-release procedures, eligibility, coverage, pricing, and underwriting standards vary by carrier and jurisdiction. Nothing on this page binds or guarantees insurance coverage.