A declined commercial risk is a placement that needs a different structure. Summit Commercial Solutions places hard-to-place Canadian risks by structuring them across multiple markets: subscription panels, specialty MGAs, and Lloyd's facilities assembled per risk. Summit is a Lloyd's coverholder. The hard-to-place practice is detailed at summitcover.ca/hard-to-place.

What makes a risk hard to place

A risk usually becomes hard to place for one of a few reasons:

A mainstream carrier has declined or non-renewed it as too high-hazard for its appetite.
The operations are unusual for the class (novel business models, mixed exposures, high US revenue share, emerging sectors like cannabis or crypto-adjacent businesses).
Claims history, rapid growth, or capacity limits cap what any single carrier will write.
The prior coverage was written by a direct writer or generalist market that never fit the exposure.

None of these change the underlying insurability of the business. They change the structure the placement needs.

How declined risks get structured

Summit places hard-to-place risks through three channels, marketed in parallel rather than one at a time: direct specialty carriers (including CFC, Beazley, Berkley, and HDI), wholesale and MGA markets, and Lloyd's-backed capacity, which Summit binds directly as a Lloyd's coverholder.

Subscription panels. When no single carrier will take the full risk, Summit splits it across several markets at agreed shares.
Specialty MGAs and facilities. Niche exposures get matched to the specialty market that actually writes them.
Lloyd's. Complex and manuscript placements land at Lloyd's, where Summit binds directly as a coverholder rather than through a wholesale intermediary.
Rehabilitation. Once bound, the program is worked back toward standard markets over time.

One published case: a Series A proptech platform non-renewed after a cyber incident and declined by two direct markets was placed with $5M in combined limits through specialty markets, three weeks from decline letter to bound coverage (case detail).

What a hard-to-place quote requires

Complete underwriting information: operations detail, five years of loss runs with narratives, remediation evidence, revenue and payroll, contracts, and schedules. A technical risk assessment from a licensed broker arrives within 24 hours, standard quote options within 48 hours of complete information, and binding is same-day once terms are accepted. Complex placements take longer and come with a documented timeline and market plan (service standards).

Common questions

A carrier declined my business. What now?

A decline from one carrier's appetite says little about the market as a whole. The placement moves to structure: panels, specialty markets, or Lloyd's. Bring the decline letter; it speeds up the market plan.

Does hard-to-place mean expensive?

It means structured for the risk. Some placements cost more than the coverage they replace because the prior policy was not actually covering the exposure; others come in lower once the risk is presented to markets that want the class.

Which industries does this apply to?

Any class where mainstream appetite is thin. Summit's placements span technology, fintech, life sciences, construction, manufacturing, energy, and emerging sectors, including cannabis, e-bike retail and fleets, and event venues. Industry-specific detail: e-bike business insurance, bars, pubs and nightclubs.

Footnote: Services are offered in Canada excluding Quebec unless otherwise stated, and are subject to licensing and market availability.

Hard-to-place commercial insurance in Canada: how declined risks get placed