Your retroactive date is the earliest date of work your policy will cover. Work performed before that date is not covered, so protecting it when you renew or switch carriers is the single most valuable thing you can do on a claims made policy. Who this is for: Technology services firms and managed service providers renewing, shopping, merging, or changing entity structure.
The short version
- The retroactive date is on your declarations page and it governs everything you have already delivered.
- Ask every new carrier for full prior acts matching your original date.
- A lapse usually resets the date permanently, which is why continuity beats price.
- New service lines and entity changes can quietly create a later date. Confirm in writing.
- Keep every declarations page. It is your only proof of the date years later.
Where to find yours
Your retroactive date is printed on the declarations page of your professional liability policy, usually right under the policy period. It is a single date and it is the most important number on the page after the limit. Work performed before it is not covered, full stop, no matter how long you have been insured since.
The three retroactive dates you will be offered
| Option | What it covers | When you see it |
|---|---|---|
| Full prior acts | All work back to the day the firm started | The goal on every renewal and every carrier change |
| A specific retroactive date | Work from that date forward | Standard once you have been continuously insured |
| Inception, sometimes called no prior acts | Only work performed after this policy started | New firms, or a carrier change handled badly |
A quote that looks cheaper is often cheaper because it resets the retroactive date. For a technology services firm with several years of completed work behind it, that is not a discount, it is a decision to go uninsured for everything you have already delivered.
How firms lose their retroactive date
- Letting the policy lapse, even briefly. Reinstatement often comes with a new retroactive date.
- Buying online without checking the prior acts wording on the new policy.
- Changing entity name or structure without telling the carrier, so the new entity has no history.
- Adding a new service line and assuming the retroactive date follows it. Some carriers apply a separate later date to new coverage parts.
- Merging with another firm and insuring the combined entity fresh, wiping out both histories.
What to do at every renewal
- Read the retroactive date on the declarations page and confirm it has not moved.
- Save the declarations page in a permanent folder. Ten years from now it is your proof.
- If you have added services, ask in writing whether the retroactive date applies to all of them.
- If you change entity names, ask that the prior entity be added as a named insured for past acts.
- Before accepting any quote that is materially cheaper, confirm the retroactive date is identical.
More on how the claims made mechanism works in the Morrow guide to occurrence and claims made forms.
What this looks like in practice
Illustrative example. Numbers are typical of claims we see and are not a promise of how any specific claim would be handled.
The setup: A technology services firm changed entity structure and the new policy was issued to the new entity with a retroactive date of the new inception.
The claim: The matter started with a Microsoft 365 tenant migration. Eleven years of a law firm's email was unrecoverable and the firm sued for $300,000.
The cost: $47,000 in defense costs and $180,000 in settlement, $227,000 in total, paid inside the policy limit after the retention.
The lesson: The claim related to work performed under the prior entity and fell outside the retroactive date. Naming the predecessor entity for prior acts at the time of the change would have prevented it.
Frequently asked questions
Q: What is a retroactive date?
It is the earliest date of work your claims made policy will cover. Anything you did before that date is excluded no matter when the claim arrives.
Q: What does full prior acts mean?
It means there is no cut off. The policy covers work back to the beginning of the firm's operations, which is the strongest position and the one to ask for when changing carriers.
Q: Can I get my old retroactive date back after a lapse?
Rarely. Most carriers will only underwrite a fresh date after a gap. That is why continuity matters more than saving a few hundred dollars at renewal.
Q: Does adding a new service change my retroactive date?
It can. Some carriers apply a later retroactive date to newly added coverage parts or services, so ask in writing whether the original date applies across everything you now do.
Q: Where do I find my retroactive date?
On the declarations page of your professional liability policy, usually just under the policy period. If you cannot find it, ask your broker to point at the line rather than describing it.
Q: Is a cheaper quote with a new retroactive date ever worth it?
Only for a brand new firm with no completed work. For everyone else, resetting the date leaves every prior engagement uninsured, which costs far more than the premium saved.
How Morrow helps technology services firms and managed service providers
Morrow is a licensed independent commercial insurance brokerage that specializes in technology services & managed service providers. Protecting prior acts and retroactive dates at renewal is exactly the kind of question we answer every week, and because we place this coverage every day we know which carriers write it well, which forms are broad, and which contract language actually needs an endorsement behind it.
- We read the contract clause and tell you what your current policy already does and does not do.
- We market your account to carriers that have real appetite for technology services firms and managed service providers rather than whoever answers first.
- We issue certificates the same day a client asks, with the endorsements listed correctly.
- We stay on the file at renewal so limits, retroactive dates, and contract requirements do not quietly drift.
Get in touch and we will see how we can help. Tell us what you do, send over any contract that is driving the requirement, and send us the question and we will tell you where you stand. Start at morrowinsure.com or reach the team through the contact options on that page.
One more thing. This article is general information for technology services firms and managed service providers and is not legal advice, tax advice, or a statement of coverage. Policy wording controls in every case, and forms vary by carrier and by state. Have a licensed advisor review your own policy and your own contract before you rely on any of it.
Last updated: Reviewed by the Morrow commercial lines team. Last updated August 2026.