Admitted carrier: an insurance company whose rates are approved by a state; its policy holders are protected by a state’s Guarantee Fund.

Agent: typically someone employed full time by an insurance company, who specializes in and sells only insurance offered by that company.

Agreed value: the determined value of a horse, as agreed upon by the insurance company and the owner, for a mortality policy. It can be determined by purchase price, as in the case of an auction.

Broker: typically someone who represents and sells insurance policies from several different companies; not employed by any one insurance company.

Endorsement: an addition to a basic policy that modifies the policy, such as putting additional coverage into place.

Excess and surplus lines carrier: an insurance company whose rates are not filed with a state and that is not protected by a state’s Guarantee Fund. They typically issue policies on businesses with a higher hazard element that admitted insurance companies wouldn’t cover.

Limit: the maximum dollar amount an insurance company will pay on a claim, as defined in the policy. A policy can specify a Per Occurrence limit (the maximum amount they’ll pay per individual claim) and/or an Aggregate limit (the maximum amount they’ll pay on the policy as a whole, all claims combined).

Named insured: the business entity or individual a policy protects.

Policy territory: the geographic region in which a policy will provide coverage. Typically the United States or Canada, unless specifically stated otherwise in the policy.

Underwriter: the individual at the insurance company that makes the decision whether or not to insure or issue a policy to an applicant. Those decisions are made based on guidelines the company has publicly established. The broker or agent deals directly with the underwriter; usually a client or applicant will not deal directly with an underwriter.