Not from every insurer. Some do not offer D&O to companies that have been trading for less than two or three years – the reasoning is that without a financial history there is no way to assess how the business is developing. That does not mean cover is unavailable: other insurers do look at this kind of risk, sometimes with special conditions. The most common of these is an insolvency exclusion, which can be discussed again once the first annual report has been filed. A new company also has one advantage: there simply are not yet many past decisions that a claim could be brought over.
When this answer applies to your situation
- The company was founded within the last two years and is only now starting active operations.
- A subsidiary founded in Latvia within an international group where the parent company already has D&O.
- Investors or the parent company's board require D&O as a governance standard.
- The board includes foreign officers for whom such a policy is standard practice.
What can change the answer
- How long the company has actually been trading and whether the first annual report has been filed.
- Whether a management balance sheet and a profit and loss account for the current period are available.
- Whether the parent company's financial figures and the group's history can serve as a benchmark.
- What the planned activity, turnover and contract volume are.
- Whether the board members also hold office in other group companies.
What to check in the policy or quote
- Which insurers look at this segment at all
- What special conditions are applied to a new company
- Whether there is an insolvency exclusion and whether it can be reviewed at renewal
- The retroactive date and the continuity date in the first policy
- Whether the quote has to be agreed with a reinsurer and how long that takes
The typical mistake
Concluding after the first declinature that the product is not available. Only some insurers offer D&O in Latvia, and their appetite for new companies differs. One declinature is one insurer's policy, not the market's answer. The other mistake is to put the question off: by the time the policy is genuinely needed, it is usually already too late to buy it.
Example
A situation typical in practice (generalised example, not a specific client)
A typical situation: a subsidiary founded in Latvia by an international group is preparing to start operations, and the parent company's board requires D&O cover for the local board. Some insurers decline, pointing to the company's age. Another insurer prepares a quote that includes an insolvency exclusion, because the first annual report has not yet been filed. The practical solution is to put the policy in place now and to come back to that exclusion at the renewal discussion, when there is a financial history.
Related content
Sources and basis
This answer is based on Kristaps Račko's practice as a broker and on the legislation in force, verified on 20 August 2026; no specific client or policy data has been used. It is not individual insurance advice. General regulatory context: Apdrošināšanas un pārapdrošināšanas izplatīšanas likums, the Latvian Insurance and Reinsurance Distribution Law (likumi.lv); supervision of brokers – the Bank of Latvia register.
This is not individual insurance advice; actual cover always depends on the chosen insurer's wording and the special conditions of the policy.