Excess and surplus (or "surplus lines") insurance covers hard to place risks which are not written by the standard markets. There are three categories:
Non-standard risks - have unusual underwriting characteristics
Unique risks - admitted carriers do not offer a filed form or rate
Capacity risks - client seeks an abnormally high level of coverage (summarized from a description at the
NAPSLO site) In the United Kingdom and possibly other countries, the word
bespoke is used to denote such tailored insurance products.