USLI Insurance in Arkansas | Specialty and Small Business Lines, the Honest Read | Cribb Insurance Group
Home›Carriers›USLI

★ Specialty Lines · Admitted and Surplus Lines Paper

How USLI Works in Arkansas.

USLI is a specialty carrier built for the risks the standard market keeps handing back — the small business with an odd class code, the consultant who needs errors and omissions, the nonprofit board, the one-day event with a bar. Here's what it actually writes, what the stamp on a surplus lines policy means under Arkansas law, the honest read on its AM Best rating, and how we'll tell you when USLI isn't the answer.

Commercial Quote Ask Cribby About Fit (479) 286-1066

Short Answer

Cribb Insurance Group is an independent agency in Bentonville, and we hold the USLI appointment. USLI is a specialty carrier — small business general liability and property, professional and management liability, nonprofit and religious organization packages, hospitality, liquor and special events, plus a set of specialty individual products like personal umbrella, condominium, renters and landlord. It is written out of Wayne, Pennsylvania, reaches you only through appointed agencies, and is part of the Berkshire Hathaway family. The honest read: its edge is breadth of appetite at the small end, on either admitted or surplus lines paper — so the useful question isn't whether it's a good carrier, it's which kind of policy your risk ends up on and what that means.

The thing that shapes the whole relationship

Two kinds of paper. Know which one you have.

Most carriers write on one basis. USLI writes on both, and that flexibility is the single most consequential thing about it — more consequential than any coverage feature, because it changes the rules your policy lives under.

Every insurance company operating in a state is either admitted or nonadmitted. Admitted means licensed here, filing its forms and rates with the Arkansas Insurance Department, and participating in the state guaranty association. Nonadmitted, also called surplus lines or excess and surplus, means the company is not licensed in that way, has far more freedom in how it writes the policy, and sits outside the guaranty association.

Here's the part people get backwards. Neither one is the good one. Surplus lines exists precisely so that risks the standard market declines can still be insured, and the freedom in the form is frequently the entire reason a difficult risk can be covered at all. What matters is not which basis you are on — it is knowing which basis you are on, and understanding what follows from it.

Admitted paper

Filed forms, guaranty association

Forms and rates are filed with the Department, the policy looks broadly like its peers, and the coverage participates in the state guaranty association. The trade-off is that a filed form is a standardized form, and standardized forms are written for standard risks.

Surplus lines paper

Freedom in the form, different rules

The company can shape the policy around a risk nobody filed a form for, which is why hard-to-place accounts get written at all. In exchange the policy sits outside the guaranty association and carries a required stamp. That trade is disclosed, not hidden — see below.

One clarification worth making up front, because the corporate family is large and the names travel: being part of Berkshire Hathaway does not make these companies interchangeable. The rated group here is the United States Liability Insurance Group of Wayne, Pennsylvania. Other Berkshire insurance companies are separate businesses with their own underwriting, claims handling, systems and ratings, and nothing about one transfers to another. We hold appointments with more than one of them and we treat them as the distinct carriers they are.
What sets the experience apart

Where a USLI policy earns its keep.

The coverage forms on a small business package look broadly like everyone else's. The difference is in what the company is willing to look at and how fast it will look. Three worth naming.

Built for the small end, on purpose

A great many carriers say they want small business and mean small-ish business. USLI is genuinely constructed around lower-hazard specialty risks at modest premium, which is a different operating model rather than a smaller version of the same one. That matters for the accounts that are too unusual for a standard package and too small to interest a large specialty market — the gap where a lot of real businesses actually live. Our honest add: appetite is specific, it moves, and it is the first thing we check. Which classes are being written this quarter is an underwriting conversation, not something we'll publish on a page.

Liability lines a standard package tends to leave out

Professional liability and errors and omissions, directors and officers, employment practices liability. These are the coverages a businessowners policy does not include, and they are the ones that catch people — a consultant sued over advice, a nonprofit board named personally, an employment claim from a former employee. Having them available alongside the general liability, rather than from three unrelated markets, makes the program easier to build and easier to keep aligned at renewal.

The trade-off, stated honestly: these are claims-made coverages with mechanics that differ from the occurrence-based liability most owners are used to. Retroactive dates and extended reporting matter enormously, and they are worth a conversation before you switch anything rather than after.

The odd, the occasional and the one-day

Nonprofit and religious organization packages, hospitality and liquor liability, special events, vacant property. These are the risks that generate the phone call starting with "nobody will write this." Frequently somebody will — it just is not the market you started with. That is the specific job an independent agency does, and it is the reason holding a specialty appointment matters even when most accounts never need one.

What we place

Specialty lines, small-business first.

What we compare through USLI for Northwest Arkansas businesses, professionals, nonprofits and specialty individual risks.

Small business

Professional and management

Specialty and individual

The specialty individual products, and where they stop.

USLI also writes a set of individual coverages that sit outside a business account: personal umbrella, condominium, renters, and landlord or dwelling coverage. These are specialty placements rather than standard market products, and they exist for households that do not fit a standard carrier's box.

What is not here is the ordinary version of any of that. There is no standard homeowners package and no personal auto. If you need the house and the cars covered, that is an entirely different set of carriers — which we also represent, so it is one conversation rather than two.

Personal Quote

What that stamp on a surplus lines policy actually means in Arkansas

If a policy ever arrives with an unfamiliar paragraph stamped on the front, this is what it is, and it is worth two minutes of your time.

Arkansas requires it. Under Ark. Code 23-65-307, a surplus lines contract has to bear the surplus lines broker's name and carry a stamp identifying it as surplus lines coverage. The stamp language, set out in Arkansas Insurance Department Rule 24, says three things plainly: that the contract may differ from one issued in the admitted market and may be more or less favorable depending on the circumstances; that the protection of the Arkansas Property and Casualty Guaranty Act does not apply to it; and that a tax of four percent is collected from the insured on surplus lines premiums. It is a disclosure, not a warning label.

Now the part that is genuinely about us rather than about you. Arkansas does not let anyone reach for surplus lines because it is quicker. Ark. Code 23-65-305 sets conditions on procurement. Where Arkansas is your home state, the full amount of coverage must not be procurable from authorized insurers actually marketing that kind of insurance here, after a diligent effort has been made — and only the balance over what the admitted market will write may go to a nonadmitted insurer. The soliciting agent or broker must also maintain written documentation of compliance.

Read that as what it is: the search of the standard market is a legal obligation on the agency, not a courtesy, and the file has to show it happened. So the fair question to ask anyone who hands you a surplus lines policy is simply where else it went first. We can answer that, because we are required to be able to.

Ark. Code 23-65-305 and 23-65-307, and Arkansas Insurance Department Rule 24, summarized. These provisions carry requirements and exceptions this page does not cover and may be amended. General information, not legal advice.
Go deeper

The coverages, in detail.

USLI is one market we compare for each of these lines. The pages below explain the coverage itself, across every carrier we hold.

General Liability What it covers, what completed operations means, and the contract language that drives additional insured requests.
Professional Liability Errors and omissions for advice-based work, and how claims-made coverage differs from the liability you already know.
Directors and Officers Why board members can be named personally, and what a nonprofit board should understand before its next meeting.
Employment Practices Claims from employees and former employees, and why a general liability policy has nothing to say about them.
Cyber Liability Where a package policy's data coverage stops and a standalone form starts.
Nonprofit and Religious Package coverage for organizations with volunteers, boards, buildings and events in the same operation.
Meet Cribby

Cribby reads the risk, not the brochure.

Cribby the Chameleon is our guide to reading a specialty program in plain English.

A chameleon adapts to its surroundings, which is the entire idea on a specialty account. These risks do not fit a standard box, and the coverage gets shaped around what the operation actually does. Cribby can also answer the questions this page deliberately won't — whether a particular class of work, organization type or event is likely to fit, and whether it would land on admitted or surplus lines paper. That is underwriting territory, and it belongs in a conversation rather than in published copy.

Get a Commercial Quote Ask Cribby a Question
Financial strength

AM Best A++ (Superior) — read honestly.

A++ AM Best · Superior

AM Best assigns a Financial Strength Rating of A++ (Superior) and a Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of aa+ (Superior), both with a stable outlook, to the United States Liability Insurance Group in its affirmation of August 22, 2025. That is a group rating covering the five companies that make up the group, which is the level worth citing here because it is the level AM Best actually rates.

Here's the honest part. A financial strength rating answers exactly one question: is the company positioned to pay what it owes on its policies. It says nothing about how a claim gets handled, how fast an adjuster returns a call, or what your renewal will look like. It also does not transfer — a rating belongs to the rated companies and not to every business that shares a corporate parent with them. Ratings are opinions, subject to change, and are not a recommendation to buy. Current ratings are at ambest.com.

Why we lead with candor here instead of a badge

A++ is the top of the AM Best scale, and there is a version of this section that puts those three characters in a very large font and stops. We'd rather you understand what it does and does not tell you. It says the rated companies are assessed as financially sound today — useful, and true. It does not tell you your claim will go smoothly, whether your class still fits the appetite in three years, or whether the policy you were issued is the right shape for your risk.

It is also worth being precise about the corporate family, because this is where a lot of writing about Berkshire-owned insurers goes wrong. There is no such thing as a Berkshire-wide grade. Each insurance group under that parent is rated on its own, and we represent more than one of them. A rating earned here is not evidence about any of the others, in either direction. Our job is to weigh the rating alongside the appetite, the form, the service and the renewal — and to have somewhere to move you if any of those stop working.

What we actually do at a claim

Narrower than some agencies imply, and we'd rather be straight about it. We don't adjust your claim and we can't overrule an adjuster.

What we do: help you decide whether a claim is worth reporting before you report it, make sure the coverage that should respond gets identified, tell you whether your policy is claims-made and what that means for the reporting clock, chase the file when it stalls, get certificates and endorsements out the door when a contract demands them, flag when a renewal or a shift in appetite means it's time to re-market the account, and move your program to another of our markets if USLI stops fitting. That last one is the part a single-market channel structurally cannot do for you.

What it costs

Priced on the risk, not a table.

Class × limits × form the specialty math

A specialty premium isn't a discount off a chart — it's built from what the operation actually does and how it classifies, the limits and retention selected, whether the coverage is occurrence or claims-made, your revenue, payroll or attendance depending on the line, your loss history, and whether the risk lands on admitted or surplus lines paper. Surplus lines placements also carry the four percent tax described above, which is collected from the insured rather than absorbed by anyone. Two businesses that describe themselves the same way can price very differently once the actual operations land, so a planning figure would mislead more than it helps and we don't publish one. Nothing here is a quote or a guarantee, and a first-term number isn't a promise about renewal. What reliably helps: get the real submission in front of the market, then let us compare where it lands.

FAQ

USLI in Arkansas: common questions.

Is Cribb Insurance Group appointed with USLI in Arkansas?
Yes. Cribb Insurance Group is an appointed independent agency for USLI and can place and service USLI coverage from our office in Bentonville. Eligibility still depends on the class of business, the state and underwriting, so the first step is confirming USLI will look at your operation. If it will, we'll quote it against our other markets; if it won't, or if another carrier fits the account better, we'll tell you.
What does USLI insure?
Specialty coverage, mostly for smaller and lower-hazard risks. On the business side that means general liability and property for a wide range of small business classes, professional liability and errors and omissions, directors and officers, employment practices liability, nonprofit and religious organization packages, hospitality and liquor, and special events. It also writes a set of specialty individual products, including personal umbrella, condominium, renters, landlord and dwelling coverage. What it is not is a standard market for your house and your cars, which is a different set of carriers we also represent.
What is the difference between admitted and surplus lines coverage?
An admitted insurer is licensed by the state, files its forms and rates with the Arkansas Insurance Department, and participates in the state guaranty association. A nonadmitted or surplus lines insurer is not licensed here in the same way, has more freedom in how it writes the policy, and does not participate in the guaranty association. Neither is inherently better. Surplus lines exists so that risks the standard market will not write can still be insured, and the freedom in the form is often the entire reason a difficult risk can be covered at all. What matters is knowing which one you have, and your policy will say so on its face.
Why did my policy come with a stamp on it?
Because Arkansas requires it on a surplus lines contract. Under Ark. Code 23-65-307 the policy has to bear the surplus lines broker's name and carry a stamp identifying it as surplus lines coverage. The stamp language, set out in Arkansas Insurance Department Rule 24, tells you plainly that the contract may differ from one issued in the admitted market and may be more or less favorable depending on the circumstances, that the protection of the Arkansas Property and Casualty Guaranty Act does not apply to it, and that a tax of four percent is collected from the insured on surplus lines premiums. It is a disclosure rather than a warning, and it is worth reading.
Can an agency put me in surplus lines just because it is easier?
Not in Arkansas. Ark. Code 23-65-305 sets conditions on procurement. Where Arkansas is your home state, the full amount of coverage must not be procurable from authorized insurers actually marketing that kind of insurance here, after a diligent effort has been made, and only the balance over what the admitted market will write may go to a nonadmitted insurer. The soliciting agent or broker also has to maintain written documentation of compliance. In practice that means the search of the standard market is a legal obligation on us rather than a courtesy, and we can show our work.
Is USLI financially strong?
AM Best assigns a Financial Strength Rating of A++ (Superior) and a Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of aa+ (Superior), both with a stable outlook, to the United States Liability Insurance Group in its affirmation of August 22, 2025. That rating covers the five companies in that group. Two things worth being precise about. First, a financial strength rating is an opinion about whether a company is positioned to pay what it owes on its policies; it is not an opinion about how a claim gets handled, and ratings change. Second, this rating belongs to these companies and does not transfer to other members of the wider corporate family, which are separate companies rated separately with their own underwriting, claims handling and systems. Current ratings are at ambest.com.

⭐ Follow Cribb Insurance Group in Google

Add us as a preferred source and our Arkansas insurance coverage shows up more often in your Google results.

Add as Preferred Source

USLI is one of 40+ carriers we represent.

Which means we can tell you honestly whether USLI is the right home for your risk — or whether one of our other markets underwrites your class better, on better paper. Send the operations, the revenue, the contracts and the loss history, or send the declarations for whatever you're carrying now, and we'll read them back to you in plain English, including whether you're on admitted or surplus lines paper and what that means. If what you have is already right, we'll tell you that too.

Commercial Quote Personal Quote Call (479) 286-1066
📍 Cribb Insurance Group Inc
1601 SW Regional Airport Blvd, Bentonville, AR 72713 📞 (479) 286-1066 ✉️ service@cribbinsurance.com 🕔 Mon–Thu 9:00–5:00
Fri 9:00–4:00

Cribb Insurance Group Inc. is an independent insurance agency licensed in Arkansas. We are not USLI, the United States Liability Insurance Group, any of its underwriting companies, or Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and this page is not endorsed, sponsored, reviewed, or approved by them. "USLI" and related marks are marks of their respective owners, used here nominatively to identify a carrier we may compare. Coverage is issued by the applicable USLI underwriting company. Other insurance companies within the same corporate family are separate businesses with their own underwriting, claims handling, systems and ratings.

This page describes coverage in general terms for informational purposes only. It is not a policy, not an offer of insurance, and not a guarantee of coverage, availability, eligibility, or price. Coverage, program terms, product availability and eligibility vary by state, by class of business, by policy, and over time, are set by the carrier, and are subject to underwriting approval and to the terms, conditions, limits, and exclusions of the policy actually issued. Whether a particular risk is written on admitted or surplus lines paper is determined by the carrier and by applicable law, not by preference. If anything on this page conflicts with the issued policy, the policy controls.

Financial Strength Ratings are opinions of an insurer's ability to meet its ongoing insurance obligations, are subject to change, and are not recommendations to purchase, hold or terminate any policy, nor do they address an insurer's claims-handling practices; current ratings are at ambest.com. The A++ (Superior) Financial Strength Rating and aa+ Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating referenced are assigned by AM Best to the United States Liability Insurance Group in its affirmation of August 22, 2025. Ratings apply to the rated companies only and do not transfer to affiliates, parents, or other companies within the same corporate family.

No premium figures, rate estimates, savings figures or suggested coverage limits are published on this page. Cost statements describe how specialty premiums are generally rated and are not a quote, not carrier-specific, and not a guarantee of your rate or your renewal.

Arkansas statutory and Arkansas Insurance Department references are general information and not legal advice. Statutes and rules are summarized, carry requirements and exceptions this page does not cover, and may be amended. Consult a licensed Arkansas attorney about how any of this applies to your situation.

Last reviewed August 2026.