High net worth insurance, explained.
High-net-worth insurance, also called private client insurance, is not one policy but a category. It covers households whose homes, vehicles, and possessions have outgrown the standard market.
Luxury is not the point. Once you have real assets, standard-market default limits and valuations start to leave gaps. Private client insurance closes those gaps and runs the household as one coordinated program.
$5M–$50M+
Excess liability towers available in coordinated programs.
Guaranteed RC
Replacement cost on the home — even past the policy limit.
One program
Home, auto, valuables, and liability coordinated together.
6 carriers
Chubb, PURE, AIG/PCS, Cincinnati, Vault, and Berkley One.
What It Is
A different policy, not a fancier one.
The carriers are specialists: a small group that underwrites affluent households and little else. The forms they use are broader than the standard market's, with open perils instead of named perils, replacement cost instead of depreciated value, and agreed value on the things that don't depreciate.
The whole program is coordinated, so one advisor sees the entire household. The standard market sells policies one at a time, often through different agents and carriers, each underwritten in isolation. Private client insurance treats your home, cars, collections, and liability as a single picture — the only way to be sure the umbrella attaches, the limits match, and no claim falls through a seam.
What sets a private client program apart.
Broader forms
Open perils instead of named perils, replacement cost instead of depreciated value, and agreed value where it matters.
Higher limits
Dwelling, liability, and valuables limits sized to what you actually own, not the mass-market defaults.
Coordinated program
One advisor sees home, auto, collections, and liability together — the only way to be sure nothing falls through a seam.
Who It's For
Exposure, not net worth.
There's no bright line, and net worth alone is a poor test. The question that matters is exposure. You're likely in this market if any of these are true.
Home
Your home costs $750K+ to rebuild
Or a standard carrier has already non-renewed or declined it — often the clearest sign you've crossed over.
Properties
You own more than one property
Second homes, pied-à-terres, and rental properties all benefit from being underwritten on the same coordinated program.
Collections
Jewelry, art, wine, or watches
Standard policies cap valuables at sub-limits that often won't cover a single piece. Scheduling solves this.
Liability
Household staff, a board seat, or public profile
Each adds exposure that the standard market's umbrella forms weren't designed to address.
Assets
Significant assets, equity, or future income
Anything a single lawsuit could reach is worth protecting with limits high enough to actually absorb the loss.
Geography
Wildfire or coastal zones
Areas where the standard market is retreating are exactly where specialty carriers still write business.
What It Covers
Broader forms, higher limits.
Across every line, the same pattern holds: broader coverage, higher limits, and a settlement that puts you back where you started instead of a depreciated fraction of it.
Home
Guaranteed replacement cost rebuilds even past the policy limit, plus cash-out and large-loss deductible waivers.
Auto
Replacement cost and agreed value, instead of depreciated actual cash value.
Valuables & collections
Jewelry, art, wine, and watches scheduled at agreed value, worldwide — not capped at a ~$1,500 sub-limit.
Excess liability
Liability towers to $50M and beyond, with board (D&O) and household-staff (EPLI) coverage built in.
Claims service
Dedicated adjusters, replacement-cost settlements, and deductible waivers on large losses.
Coordination
Matched limits across every line so the umbrella attaches and no claim falls through a seam.
The Carriers
A short list of specialty insurers.
High-net-worth coverage is written by a short list of specialty carriers, and you can't buy most of them directly. They distribute only through independent agencies. The market has tightened lately, especially in wildfire and coastal zones, which makes the ability to shop several carriers at once matter more than it used to.
Carrier
Chubb
The long-standing standard for private client coverage, with deep specialty-claims expertise.
Carrier
PURE
A member-owned exchange known for pricing discipline and a focus on better-managed risks.
Carrier
AIG / Private Client Select
Built for global and complex households with international exposure or unusual assets.
Carrier
Cincinnati Private Client
Strong appetite for high-value homes and a long-tenured agent-driven model.
Carrier
Vault
A newer entrant built around reciprocal ownership and modern service expectations.
Carrier
Berkley One
Backed by Berkley's specialty-insurance bench, with flexible underwriting on complex households.
What It Costs
Think in ranges.
A private-client program commonly runs from about $5,000 to $50,000+ a year, and more for large or multi-property estates.
It also isn't always more expensive than the standard market for equivalent protection: these carriers underwrite better-managed risks and reward bundling the whole household together. The goal at this level is the lowest total cost of risk — the premium plus whatever a gap would cost you out of pocket.
How To Buy It
Through an independent agent.
You reach these carriers through an independent agency, one appointed with the private-client markets, able to shop them against each other and coordinate the whole household.
An independent agency works for you rather than for any single insurer. And it costs you nothing extra: the premium is the same as buying direct, because the carrier builds the commission in either way.
FAQ
Common questions.
The questions we hear most often about private client coverage: what it costs, who qualifies, and how to make the switch.
Talk to an advisor →Ready When You Are
Coverage built around your whole household.
A licensed Bulwark advisor will review your homes, vehicles, collections, and liability, then return a coordinated high-net-worth recommendation in about a day.