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Life & Health · Chapter 1 · Company Types

Surplus Lines Insurance

Definition
Coverage for high, substandard, or unusual risks the admitted (authorized) market will not write — placed with a nonadmitted insurer through a licensed surplus lines agent, and only after a diligent effort to find the coverage in the authorized market first.
Example
A golf tournament's "hole-in-one" prize coverage that no admitted carrier will touch.
Easy to confuse with

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Verified against primary sources · 2026-08-10