Before the stamp: pre-bind checks at a Lloyd's syndicate, by class of business

How a syndicate is governed

A syndicate is capital backed by members; it has no staff of its own. A managing agent runs it: employs the underwriters, writes the business plan and operates the controls. Brokers bring risks; the Corporation of Lloyd's supervises how managing agents behave. Every pre-bind check exists because one of these three relationships needs evidence before capital is committed.

The rulebook has two layers. The Principles for doing business at Lloyd's set the fundamental responsibilities of every managing agent: 13 principles, each graded on a Maturity Matrix from Foundational to Advanced depending on how material the syndicate is. Beneath them, the older Minimum Standards still describe the control expectations in practical terms: MS2 for underwriting controls (authorities, pre-bind quality assurance, contract certainty) and MS3 for price and rate monitoring.

Broker

Places the risk, prepares the MRC slip, carries out its own client due diligence and acts as a conduit for further information.

Managing agent

Decides whether to write, at what price and line, and must prove the decision followed the syndicate business plan and its controls.

Lloyd's

Approves the business plan, sets standards, collects returns (pricing, exposure, RDS) and can restrict a syndicate that falls short.

TOBA check

Hard gate: no TOBA, no trade

A Terms of Business Agreement is the contract between the broker firm and the managing agent that governs how they deal with each other, before any individual risk is discussed. It sets roles and responsibilities, who holds premium and claims money and in what capacity, commission deduction, regulatory duties, data protection and financial crime obligations, and termination rights.

Why it exists

Without it the managing agent has no agreed basis for the broker holding its money or acting on its behalf. The market uses model forms produced by the LMA and IUA with LIIBA: a Risk Transfer TOBA (broker holds premium as agent of the insurer, so the risk of broker insolvency sits with the insurer) and a Non Risk Transfer TOBA (money held for the client). Both were updated in 2018 for GDPR and the Criminal Finances Act 2017.

Question it answers

Is the placing broker an entity we have a current, signed agreement with, on the right form, for this type of business?

Owner

Broker relations or delegated authority team maintains the register; underwriting operations applies it at submission.

Inputs

Broker organisation name, broker email domain, UMR (characters 2 to 5 carry the Lloyd's broker number), producing or sub-broker if a chain exists.

How it is done

Resolve the broker to one legal entity: names vary (Aon, Aon UK Limited, Aon Risk Solutions).
Check agreement status and dates, not just a yes/no flag: an "active" record past its expiry is a common error.
Check type fits the placement: RT versus NRT affects premium payment and credit control.
For chains, check the sub-broker is covered or that the Lloyd's broker has its own arrangements in place.

Outcomes

In force: proceed. Known broker, TOBA lapsed or suspended: hold, no quote or bind until renewed. Unknown broker: onboarding (KYC, FCA and Lloyd's broker status, TOBA execution).

Where it goes wrong

Group restructures (acquired brokers trading under old names), overseas producing brokers with no direct agreement, and TOBAs held in document folders rather than a queryable register.

Underwriter authority check

Routing gate: refer upward if outside authority

This check proves the person about to commit the syndicate is allowed to. Authority at Lloyd's is personal and written: each underwriter has terms of reference stating the classes, territories, maximum line and limit they may write, and anything beyond that must be escalated.

Why it exists

MS2 expects underwriters' authorities to be in writing, properly authorised, signed and reviewed annually, and risks outside an underwriter's authority to be escalated to someone with the appropriate level through a clearly defined process. Maximum line sizes must align with the approved Syndicate Business Forecast, with currency conversion at SBF rates.

Question it answers

Is this a recognised underwriter, for this class of business, and is the requested line and limit within their personal authority?

Owner

Underwriting management (nominated director, typically the CUO) sets authorities; underwriting operations or the workbench enforces them.

Inputs

Underwriter email, class of business, territory, 100% limit, proposed line %, currency and FX to the authority currency, lead or follow.

How it is done

Match on identity plus class, not identity alone: an underwriter can be authorised for marine liability but not energy liability.
Convert limit and line to the authority currency, then compare to the personal limit and the syndicate maximum line.
Check the account is active on the date of binding (leavers and secondments).
If the managing agent runs several syndicates or a company platform, apply its written allocation policy: MS2 expects objective criteria for allocating business between them.

Outcomes

Recognised and within authority: assign. Exceeds authority: referral with evidence of approval before bind. Not recognised for the class: route to class triage, not auto-decline.

Where it goes wrong

Authorities kept in PDFs, line checked but not limit, FX ignored, and referrals approved by email without being linked to the risk record.

Sanctions check

Hard gate: a true match stops the risk

Insurance is a financial service, so covering a designated person, paying their claim or even holding their premium can breach UK, US, EU or UN sanctions. Marine liability is particularly exposed: owners, charterers, terminal operators, cargo interests and vessels are all separately sanctionable.

Why it exists

Lloyd's sanctions due diligence guidance sets general principles managing agents should build into their business practices, recognising that due diligence will vary by class and method of acceptance. Brokers are a key source of screening information, but not the only one: the managing agent must screen for itself.

Question it answers

Is any party to this contract, or any location or activity it covers, subject to sanctions that would make providing cover unlawful or require a licence?

Owner

Compliance owns policy and dispositions; underwriting operations runs screening; the MLRO or sanctions officer decides true matches.

Inputs

Every named party (assured, co-assureds, reinsured, additional insureds), their country, vessels and IMO numbers where relevant, territories and trading areas, beneficial ownership where known.

How it is done

Screen names and countries through a list provider (for example LexisNexis Bridger, World-Check, Dow Jones) with fuzzy matching.
Resolve alerts: most are false positives; record who cleared each one and why.
Consider ownership: under OFAC's 50% rule, subsidiaries of designated parents can be caught even if not named.
Check high risk territories and trading nexus separately from the name screen.
Include a sanctions clause. LMA3100A (Sanctions Limitation Clause) replaced the title of LMA3100 in October 2023 because the clause suspends rather than excludes cover; LMA3200 is an alternative for contracts outside English or US law.
Re-screen at bind, on every endorsement adding parties, and before paying claims.

2026 change to note

Since 28 January 2026 the FCDO's UK Sanctions List is the only source of UK designations; the OFSI Consolidated List is closed, and systems keyed on the OFSI Group ID need the UK list's Unique ID instead.

Outcomes

True match: stop, escalate, no quote. Possible match or licensed activity: hold for compliance. Territory nexus: refer. Clear: proceed, and re-screen at bind.

Where it goes wrong

Screening only the first named assured, relying solely on a clause, and deviating from model sanctions wording without compliance review, which Lloyd's specifically cautions against.

Standardisation check

Data gate: nothing downstream works without it

This is less a single rule than the discipline that makes every other check possible. Submissions arrive as free-text slips, spreadsheets and emails. Standardisation turns them into structured, coded data: the same field names, controlled values and codes that pricing, exposure, tax, regulatory reporting and claims all rely on.

Why it exists

The London market's data model is the Core Data Record (CDR), which holds the transactional data needed at written line for premium settlement, claims matching, tax, and regulatory reporting. It aligns with ACORD standards and with the MRC v3 slip format; CDR v3.2 and the refreshed MRC v3 were published by the London Market Group Data Council in March 2023.

Status in 2026

In March 2026 Lloyd's transitioned away from its Blueprint Two programme, but kept process simplification and common data standards as part of its new strategy. The re-platforming timetable changed; the case for capturing clean, standard data at the point of underwriting did not.

Question it answers

Is the submission complete, internally consistent and expressed in the codes the syndicate and market use, so that decisions and returns are reliable?

What gets standardised

Parties: legal names, domicile as ISO 3166 codes, broker entity.
Contract: inception and expiry dates, insurance or reinsurance, lead or follow, UMR format.
Money: currency as ISO 4217, limits, excesses, deductibles, brokerage as numbers not prose.
Classification: Lloyd's risk codes, class and sub-class, SIC or NAICS of the assured, coverage vocabulary.
Location: regulatory risk location and territory lists that drive licensing and tax.
Wording: clause references to market model wordings rather than bespoke text where possible.

How it is done

Extraction (increasingly AI-assisted) into a canonical schema, normalisation to controlled lists, validation rules (end date after start, currencies valid, limit greater than zero), and a confidence score that sends uncertain fields to a human.

Outcomes

Complete and valid: feed checks. Missing mandatory data: query the broker before quoting. Not a stop in itself, but a risk cannot pass PBQA or be reported correctly without it.

Where it goes wrong

Free-text territories ("worldwide ex USA, Canada") that nobody expands, currencies inferred from symbols, and codes assigned after bind by a separate team.

The full pre-bind journey

Yes, there are several more checks. Grouped by the question each stage answers, in roughly the order a well-run syndicate applies them. Rows marked with a bar are the four covered above.

Stage 1 May we engage at all?

Cheap, fast, binary checks that should happen before an underwriter spends time on the risk.

Check	What it establishes	Basis	Gate
Sanctions and territory	No designated party, location or activity; high risk territory nexus identified.	UK / US / EU / UN law; Lloyd's sanctions guidance	Stop / hold
TOBA	Agreement in force with the placing broker.	LMA / IUA / LIIBA model TOBAs	Hold
Licensing, tax and stamp	Lloyd's may write this risk location and class; which premium taxes and local clauses apply; whether the risk must go on Lloyd's Europe (LIC) paper.	Crystal+ and Risk Locator Tool; EEA risks written through Lloyd's Insurance Company S.A.	Stop / reroute
Underwriter authority	Recognised underwriter for the class; within personal limits.	MS2 underwriting controls	Refer
Appetite and plan	Class, territory and size sit inside the syndicate business plan and underwriting guidelines, including any exclusions (for example ESG or war-exposed trades).	SBF; Principles on business planning	Decline / refer

Stage 2 Do we understand the risk?

Check	What it establishes	Basis	Gate
Standardisation and completeness	Structured, coded data; mandatory fields present.	CDR, MRC v3, ACORD, Lloyd's risk codes	Query broker
Entity and financial profile	Assured correctly identified; financial strength, listing, industry and ownership understood (S&P, D&B, Companies House).	Underwriting guidelines; sanctions ownership due diligence	Advisory
Loss history	Loss runs for 5 or more years, open claims, large loss narrative; expiring terms for renewals.	Pricing methodology (MS3)	Query / load price
Risk quality	Operations, vessels, equipment, contracts (for example indemnity and hold-harmless terms in port or terminal agreements), surveys and risk engineering.	Class underwriting guidelines	Advisory
Conduct	Customer type; vulnerability or fair value considerations where retail or SME customers are in the chain.	FCA conduct rules; Principles on customer outcomes	Refer if flagged

Stage 3 Is it worth writing, and can we afford the loss?

Check	What it establishes	Basis	Gate
Pricing adequacy	Offered premium versus technical and benchmark price; margin within referral thresholds.	MS3 price and rate monitoring; Principle 1 underwriting profitability	Refer below threshold
Rate change (renewals)	Risk adjusted rate change against the expiring policy, recorded per risk.	MS3; RARC reporting to Lloyd's	Record
Line size and limit	Line within the SBF maximum for the class and currency.	MS2; SBF	Refer
Exposure and aggregation	Contribution to accumulations (port, terminal, region, peril, clash across classes) and to Realistic Disaster Scenario losses.	Principles on catastrophe risk; RDS returns	Refer / reduce line
Reinsurance fit	Risk is protected by outwards reinsurance, or retention is acceptable; no excluded classes or territories.	Principles on outwards reinsurance	Refer

Stage 4 Is the contract right?

Check	What it establishes	Basis	Gate
Pre-bind quality assurance (PBQA)	Slip complete and unambiguous: parties, period, limits, premium, security, subjectivities, choice of law, claims agreement parties. Leaders review every contract; followers apply their own risk-based controls.	MS2 PBQA and contract certainty	Hold until fixed
Wording and mandatory clauses	Sanctions clause, cyber exposure made clear (affirmed or excluded), war and terrorism provisions, market model wordings versus bespoke changes.	LMA model clauses; Lloyd's market bulletins	Hold
Subjectivities	Conditions to be met before or after inception (surveys, warranties, information) and who tracks them.	Contract certainty	Track

Stage 5 Final gates at bind

Check	What it establishes	Basis	Gate
Referral and peer review	Approvals captured for anything outside authority, price or appetite; peer review for defined criteria.	MS2 peer and independent review	Hold
Re-screen sanctions	Nothing has changed since quote (new designations happen weekly).	Lloyd's sanctions guidance	Stop
Firm order and stamp	Firm order received and agreed, line written, correct syndicate or LIC stamp applied, UMR and references recorded.	Contract certainty; licensing	Bind
Data capture	Bound data entered for premium processing, tax and regulatory reporting.	CDR; Lloyd's returns	Post-bind

Pricing in detail

Lloyd's does not tell a syndicate what to charge; it requires the syndicate to know whether what it charges is adequate, consistently and per risk. MS3 expects the pricing calculation to be recorded for each risk, the gap between benchmark and actual price to be monitored at risk, risk code and class level, and renewal pricing to be tracked against prior periods. Its guidance also covers how model output should be interpreted and when a risk must be escalated for a second opinion.

Three numbers do most of the work:

Technical price: Expected loss plus loadings. Current best practice includes internal expenses, acquisition cost, reinsurance cost and cost of capital, with capital loaded more heavily on volatile excess layers.
Benchmark price: The premium that would deliver the business-plan loss ratio. Comparing benchmark to achieved price, with the plan loss ratio, gives the ultimate loss ratio at which the risk was actually written.
RARC: Risk adjusted rate change on renewals: the price movement after stripping out changes in exposure, limits, deductibles and terms. When RARC falls below plan, a syndicate typically either writes less or accepts weaker price adequacy, which Lloyd's watches against the approved plan.
Pre-bind use: The check is a threshold: price adequacy below a set percentage of benchmark triggers referral; pricing must be recorded before bind so it can be reported, not reconstructed afterwards.

Exposure in detail

Exposure management asks what this risk adds to the losses the syndicate could suffer from one event, not just from this policy. Managing agents are expected to keep catastrophe risk from natural and non-natural perils under appropriate control in line with their strategy.

Lloyd's tests this through Realistic Disaster Scenarios: compulsory scenarios all syndicates report, plus two events each syndicate defines for its own material exposures. In-force RDS losses are submitted twice a year, and an anticipated breach of plan or franchise guidelines must be notified to Lloyd's Exposure Management. The scenario specifications name specific major ports that managing agents should consider, which is directly relevant to ports and terminals liability.

For a marine liability submission, the pre-bind exposure check typically covers:

Accumulation: Other policies at the same port, terminal, shipyard or offshore field; a single explosion or collision can trigger stevedore, wharfinger, charterer and property policies at once.
Clash: The same event hitting marine liability, cargo, hull, energy and property books, and the same assured appearing on several layers.
Scenario contribution: Marginal impact on RDS and internal scenarios (major port event, cyber, pollution).
Limits versus appetite: Line and limit compared to class maximums and per-event risk appetite; reinsurance recoveries and retentions after the event.
Pre-bind use: A breach of an aggregate limit is a referral or a reduced line, and the exposure record must exist at bind so it counts in the next return.

Business plan by class of business

Every syndicate writes to a Syndicate Business Forecast (SBF) approved by Lloyd's. The approval cycle has to be complete by mid-November for underwriting starting on 1 January, and Lloyd's sets mandatory plan exchange rates for USD, CAD, EUR, AUD and other currencies. Once approved, managing agents must seek advance approval for material deviations from the plan and review adherence to it at least quarterly.

That is why the first underwriting question on any submission is not "is it a good risk?" but "is it inside our plan for this class?" The plan sets the same levers for every class; what changes is which checks carry the weight.

Volume: Planned gross written premium and number of risks per class and sub-class, split by distribution channel (open market, lineslip, binder).
Profitability: Plan loss ratio, benchmark price and assumed risk adjusted rate change; the pricing check measures each risk against these.
Line and limit: Maximum line and limit per class in plan currencies at plan FX; the authority check enforces them.
Appetite: Risk codes, territories, sub-classes and exclusions the plan allows. Lloyd's risk code guidance for the 2027 year of account adds new codes for planning.
Exposure budget: Aggregates and disaster-scenario limits by zone, port, area or systemic event.
Reinsurance: Outwards protection assumed in the plan; a risk outside the treaty changes its net cost.

D&O

Directors and officers liability protects individual directors (Side A), reimburses the company for indemnifying them (Side B) and, for listed companies, covers the entity for securities claims (Side C). Losses are driven by litigation and insolvency rather than physical events, so the plan is about which companies, which layers and how much US securities exposure the syndicate accepts.

Sub-classesPublic listed, private, financial institutions, Side A DIC

Plan leversShare of US-listed risks; primary versus excess; max limit per tower

Pricing basisRate per million by attachment; retention

Main accumulationSame group across towers and years; systemic events

Class-specific pre-bind checks

Class check	Why it matters for this class	Data needed	Gate
Listing and securities exposure	Securities class actions drive severity. Filings dropped in 2025 while median settlements rose 21% to $17m, so frequency alone understates the risk.	Exchange, ticker, market cap, ADR programme, IPO or de-SPAC date	Refer if outside plan
Financial condition	Large bankruptcies are adding D&O claims tied to governance and financial oversight, so underwriters are looking harder at financial health and board practices.	Altman Z-score, rating, going concern, debt maturities, cash runway	Refer / decline distressed
Sector and emerging risk	AI-related securities filings reached 13 in the first half of 2026, against 14 for the whole of 2025. Biotech, crypto and private credit carry similar disclosure risk.	SIC, disclosures on AI, clinical trial phase, crypto holdings	Refer
Litigation and regulatory history	Prior or pending litigation, regulator investigations and restatements are usually excluded or priced; missing disclosure is a coverage dispute waiting to happen.	Litigation schedule, SEC or FCA matters, warranty or no-known-circumstances letter	Hold until received
Transactions	M&A, IPO, SPAC and spin-offs change who is insured and trigger run-off or change-in-control provisions.	Deal pipeline, run-off requirements	Refer
Programme structure	Attachment point, follow-form terms, Side A/B/C split, retentions, continuity and prior/pending dates determine what the line really pays.	Tower schedule, primary wording, retro and continuity dates	Hold for PBQA
Aggregation	The same insured can sit on several layers or years; a market crash or systemic AI event can hit D&O, FI and PI together.	Group entity map, other lines written on the insured	Refer if above limit

Marine Liability

Marine liability covers third-party liability of businesses operating around ships and ports: terminal operators, stevedores, charterers, ship repairers, marine contractors. Losses come from contracts, cargo handling, pollution and major port events, so the plan combines contract discipline with port-level accumulation control.

Sub-classesPorts and terminals, stevedores, charterers' liability, ship repair, marine contractors

Plan leversUS exposure share; max limit; pollution appetite

Pricing basisThroughput, revenue, payroll, vessel calls

Main accumulationPort, terminal and single-event clash with hull and cargo

Class-specific pre-bind checks

Class check	Why it matters for this class	Data needed	Gate
Contract review	Liability is mostly assumed by contract: terminal terms, indemnities, Himalaya clauses and knock-for-knock arrangements decide who pays.	Standard trading conditions, key customer contracts, limitation regime	Hold until reviewed
Interaction with P&I	Charterers and operators may already have club cover; the syndicate needs to know whether it is primary, excess of club or filling gaps.	Club entry, P&I certificate, overlap schedule	Refer if unclear
Pollution and US exposure	US operations bring OPA 90, COFR, USL&H and Jones Act exposures that many plans restrict or price separately.	US locations, US-flag vessels, pollution sub-limits	Refer
Port and terminal accumulation	Lloyd's disaster scenarios name major ports for managing agents to consider. One explosion can hit several insureds at once.	Terminal and port location, geocode, other policies at same port	Refer above aggregate
Exposure data	Pricing needs verifiable throughput (TEU, tonnes), vessel calls, equipment such as cranes, and payroll.	Operational statistics for 3 to 5 years	Query broker
Counterparty sanctions	Terminals handle vessels and cargo that can be sanctioned even when the insured is clean.	Vessel call lists, cargo types, trading areas	Stop on true match

Marine War

Marine war covers hull, cargo and liabilities against war, strikes, terrorism, piracy and related perils excluded from standard marine policies. It is the most time-sensitive class: the risk changes as conflicts move, so the plan is managed by area, voyage and notice rather than annual averages.

Sub-classesHull war, cargo war, war P&I, blocking and trapping, piracy / K&R

Plan leversAggregate by listed area; additional premium appetite

Pricing basisAnnual rate plus additional premium per listed-area call

Main accumulationMany vessels in one strait, port or conflict zone

Class-specific pre-bind checks

Class check	Why it matters for this class	Data needed	Gate
Listed area check	The Joint War Committee's JWLA-034 (29 July 2026) moved the Red Sea boundary north from 18°N to 25.5°N, bringing much more of Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coast into the listed area. JWLA-033 in March had added Bahrain, Djibouti, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar.	Current JWC circular, planned voyages, port calls	Refer / quote AP
Notice of cancellation	War cover runs on short notice. The standard clause gives 7 days, with a different rule where one of the five major powers is involved. Underwriters must track which policies were re-rated when the list changed.	Policy notice clause, JWC circular date, reinstatement terms	Track
Vessel behaviour and sanctions	Name screening is not enough: ships spending long periods with tracking switched off rose to 2,157 in Q2 2026, almost five times Q1.	IMO number, ownership, AIS history, flag changes	Stop / hold
Oil price cap attestations	Where Russian-origin oil is involved, the LMA hull and cargo price cap clauses (LMA5650 and LMA5651) reflect per-voyage attestation requirements.	Cargo origin, voyage attestations	Hold until attested
Detention and blocking	Vessels stranded during the Hormuz closure in 2026 raised constructive total loss exposure; many war clauses allow a claim after 12 months' detention.	Detention period in wording, vessels currently in closed areas	Refer
Area accumulation	A single escalation can damage or trap many insured vessels and cargoes together.	Fleet positions, cargo in transit by area, hull war values	Reduce line / refer
Cyber war clarity	Lloyd's 2027 risk code guidance reserves the WY code for affirmative cyber war cover only, so the wording and the coding must agree.	Cyber clause, risk code	Hold for PBQA

Property

Property covers physical damage and business interruption to buildings, plant and stock, typically direct and facultative or through binders. Natural catastrophe drives capital, so the plan is built around modelled losses, zone aggregates and Lloyd's disaster scenarios.

Sub-classesDirect and facultative, binders, energy onshore, terrorism

Plan leversCat budget by zone; US versus international; limit per location

Pricing basisRate on TIV plus modelled cat load

Main accumulationHurricane, earthquake, flood and wildfire zones

Class-specific pre-bind checks

Class check	Why it matters for this class	Data needed	Gate
Schedule of values quality	Models are only as good as the SOV: addresses, construction, occupancy, protection and exposure (COPE) must be complete and values current after inflation.	Geocoded SOV, COPE fields, valuation date	Query broker
Catastrophe modelling	Each risk's modelled loss adds to zone aggregates and Realistic Disaster Scenario losses that Lloyd's collects twice a year.	Vendor model output (AAL, PML), zone aggregates	Refer above budget
Secondary perils	Flood, severe convective storm and wildfire are less well modelled but now drive frequent losses.	Flood zone, wildfire score, deductibles	Refer / load
Risk engineering	Survey findings and recommendations change both acceptance and price.	Survey report, open recommendations	Subjectivity
Deductibles and sub-limits	Named-storm percentage deductibles and BI or CBI sub-limits define the real exposure.	Deductible schedule, sub-limits	Hold for PBQA
Mandatory clauses	Cyber must be clearly covered or excluded; terrorism and communicable disease positions must be explicit.	Clause set	Hold for PBQA
Licensing and location	US property often goes through surplus lines; EEA property must be written on Lloyd's Europe paper.	Risk location, producing broker, state	Stop / reroute

Cargo

Cargo covers goods in transit by sea, air and land, and often in storage through stock throughput policies. Losses come from single conveyances, ports and warehouses, theft and war routes, so the plan controls accumulation by location and vessel while the market stays competitive.

Sub-classesTransit open covers, stock throughput, project cargo, specie

Plan leversMax per conveyance and per location; commodity appetite

Pricing basisRate on declared values; open cover adjustments

Main accumulationPorts, warehouses, single large vessels

Class-specific pre-bind checks

Class check	Why it matters for this class	Data needed	Gate
Conveyance standards	Several factors have become pass or fail: vessel classification under the Institute Classification Clause, IACS class society, vessel age limits and IMDG compliance.	Vessel IMO, class society, age, dangerous goods declarations	Hold / held covered at AP
Route and war	Cargo on routes through listed areas needs war and strikes terms and may need additional premium or rerouting.	Voyage routes, war and strikes clauses	Refer
Location accumulation	Stock throughput adds large static values in warehouses and ports that sit alongside property and marine liability exposure.	Storage locations, max values per site, port stock	Refer above aggregate
Commodity and packing	Perishables, electronics and pharmaceuticals carry theft, temperature and packing risk.	Commodity list, packing, security measures	Load / refer
Sanctions and trade controls	Origin, destination, consignee and vessel must be screened; oil cargo may need price cap attestations.	Trade parties, origin and destination, attestations	Stop on true match
Terms and valuation	Institute Cargo Clauses A, B or C and the valuation basis define what the line pays.	Clauses, valuation basis, deductibles	Hold for PBQA
Pricing discipline	Rates remain soft: good programmes saw reductions of 7.5% to 15% or more in 2026, so rate change tracking and benchmark checks matter.	Expiring terms, loss ratio, declarations	Refer below threshold

Plan shapes describe typical structures, not any real syndicate's approved plan.

How the core checks shift by class

Same checks, different weight. Critical means the check is where most risks in that class fail or get referred.

Check	D&O	Marine Liability	Marine War	Property	Cargo
Sanctions	HighEntity, major shareholders, directors where named	CriticalVessels and cargo counterparties	CriticalVessels, ownership, AIS behaviour, price cap	StandardEntity and locations	CriticalParties, origin, destination, vessel
TOBA	StandardStandard	StandardStandard; watch overseas producing brokers	StandardStandard; short-notice renewals	HighBinders and coverholder chains	HighOpen covers via forwarders and local agents
Underwriter authority	HighTower limit and US listing authority	StandardLimit and US exposure	CriticalListed-area and AP authority	HighLocation limit and cat budget authority	StandardPer-conveyance and per-location limits
Standardisation	StandardFinancial data, listing, tower schedule	HighExposure statistics, locations	CriticalIMO numbers, voyages, areas	CriticalGeocoded SOV, COPE	HighDeclarations, locations, commodity codes
Licensing and tax	HighUS, EEA and local D&O rules	HighMultiple risk locations	StandardStandard	CriticalSurplus lines, LIC, local tax	HighWhere cargo is insured and delivered
Pricing	CriticalILF by attachment; SCA frequency and severity	HighThroughput and loss history	CriticalAdditional premium by area, daily repricing	CriticalCat load plus attritional	HighSoft market rate monitoring
Exposure	HighSystemic and tower aggregation	HighPort accumulation	CriticalArea accumulation, detention	CriticalNat cat zones and RDS	HighWarehouse and port accumulation
PBQA and wording	CriticalSide A/B/C, continuity, exclusions	HighContract and limitation terms	CriticalNotice of cancellation, listed areas, cyber war	HighDeductibles, cyber and CD clauses	HighICC A/B/C, classification, war and strikes

Sources

Requirements change through market bulletins; confirm current versions on lloyds.com and Crystal+ before building controls on this summary.

Before the stamp goes on the slip

Pre-bind checklist

How a syndicate is governed

Broker

Managing agent

Lloyd's

TOBA check

Underwriter authority check

Sanctions check

Standardisation check

The full pre-bind journey

Stage 1 May we engage at all?

Stage 2 Do we understand the risk?

Stage 3 Is it worth writing, and can we afford the loss?

Stage 4 Is the contract right?

Stage 5 Final gates at bind

Pricing in detail

Exposure in detail

Business plan by class of business

D&O

Class-specific pre-bind checks

Marine Liability

Class-specific pre-bind checks

Marine War

Class-specific pre-bind checks

Property

Class-specific pre-bind checks

Cargo

Class-specific pre-bind checks

How the core checks shift by class

Sources

Test the gate logic