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Product Liability in Tennessee

Tennessee’s Products Liability Act imposes two separate timing rules. First, a product-liability action must be brought within six years after the injury; any shorter applicable limitations period can still control. Second, the outside product-age bar is the shorter of 10 years after first purchase or one year after the product’s anticipated life expires. The statute has specific asbestos and breast-implant exceptions.

What Is Product Liability Insurance?

Product liability can cover claims that a product you make, import, distribute or sell injured someone or damaged property. If your business handles products, describe every role in the supply chain and ask how the quote treats product damage and recall costs. Read the national Product liability guide.

What to Watch for With Product Liability in Tennessee

  • Record first purchase and expected product life

    Tennessee’s outside product-age bar is the shorter of 10 years from first purchase or one year after the anticipated life expires. It is separate from the six-year injury deadline, and a shorter otherwise-applicable filing period may also control. Preserve both injury and purchase/service-life dates. 1,2

  • Do not assume the six-year rule overrides repose

    The six-year deadline runs from injury; the product-age bar separately runs from first purchase or anticipated-life expiration, whichever produces the shorter statutory limit. An older product report can therefore raise a different timing question from a recently occurring injury. 1,2

  • Flag specialized product categories

    Tennessee’s time bars expressly exclude asbestos exposure and provide a separate period for silicone gel breast implants. Identify these product categories at placement so the broker can confirm whether ordinary product-liability terms address the relevant claims. 2

Which Providers Have Documented Tennessee Licenses?

These providers publish a national listing for Product liability; the state records document licenses for the entities and roles shown below. Some records rely on company-reported information rather than independent regulator verification. A national listing does not confirm the product is available in Tennessee. Check the regulator’s license lookup and confirm state availability for your business when requesting a quote.

  • Vouch

    Vouch Specialty Insurance Services, LLC

    Insurance producer, Surplus-lines broker · checked 2026-09-28

    Vouch’s licenses page, effective January 16, 2025, lists producer licenses in all 50 states and DC. Its separate surplus-lines table includes Idaho number 870820, while a footnote says Georgia and Idaho do not issue agency-level surplus-lines licenses. Because those statements conflict for Idaho, this record keeps Idaho producer-only and does not treat the table number as established agency surplus-lines authority. The page is company-reported and does not establish product availability. 14

    Vouch lists product liability among the core coverages in its technology-company programs.

Who Regulates Insurance in Tennessee?

Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance

TDCI regulates and licenses insurance companies, agents, brokers, surplus-lines agents, and public adjusters. Its complaint process accepts complaints about agents or companies when the policy was written in Tennessee, and its property/casualty unit reviews filed policy rates, rules, and forms. 3,4,5

Surplus-Lines Tax and Stamping Office in Tennessee

Reported tax rate. 5% of gross premium plus 0.175% SLAS transaction fee 6,7

For Tennessee-home-state surplus-lines policies, TDCI lists a 5% tax on gross premium and a 0.175% SLAS transaction fee on gross premium; the agent receives an invoice and pays both through SLIP. The sources reviewed do not establish that the fee is always separately charged to the policyholder or resolve guaranty-association treatment, so ask your broker to itemize charges and review the policy notice.

Questions to Ask Before You Buy Product Liability in Tennessee

  1. Which entities design, import, manufacture, label, distribute, install, or sell our products in Tennessee?
  2. What product dates, warnings, warranties, and change records should we preserve for claims in Tennessee?
  3. How do the policy’s product wording, reporting terms, and defense provisions apply when a claim involves several product-chain businesses?

Product Liability Insurance in Tennessee: Frequently Asked Questions

What is Tennessee’s outside filing deadline?

Generally the claim must be filed within 10 years after first purchase or within one year after the product’s anticipated life expires, whichever is shorter, subject to statutory exceptions and the separate injury-based deadline. 1,2

How do Tennessee’s injury deadline and product-age cutoff differ?

The six-year deadline runs from injury. Separately, the outside product cutoff is the shorter of 10 years after first purchase or one year after anticipated life expires, with statutory exceptions. 1,2

Sources for Product Liability Insurance in Tennessee

  1. Adams v. Air Liquide America, L.P. Tennessee Court of Appeals; Opinion discusses Tennessee Code § 29-28-103 and the statutory repose period and exceptions. Accessed 2026-09-29.
  2. tennessee insurance regulator. State insurance regulator; TDCI official insurance-division and consumer pages describe department scope, review units and complaint role. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  3. TDCI Agent/Producer Resources. State insurance regulator; Agent Licensing Section licenses producers, business entities, surplus-lines agents, brokers, and public adjusters; page links to Verify License. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  4. File an Insurance Complaint. State insurance regulator; TDCI accepts online complaints about insurers and agents only for policies written in Tennessee; third-party claimants are directed to call. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  5. Surplus Lines Filing Procedures. Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance; Tax Payments section: 5% gross premium plus .175% of gross premium SLAS transaction fee; agents receive quarterly invoices and pay via ACH in SLIP. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  6. Tennessee Public Chapter 446 (2011), T.C.A. §56-14-113. Tennessee Secretary of State; Current tax framework enacted in §56-14-113: 5% applies when Tennessee is the insured’s home state; tax collected from insured in addition to premium. Read with current TDCI filing-procedure page for current fee and SLIP handling. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  7. Licenses. At-Bay; Current producer introduction and state table; At-Bay Insurance Services LLC; P&C and surplus-lines identifiers. Accessed 2026-09-21.
  8. Licenses and Carriers. Coalition; Licenses and Carriers, re-read 22 September 2026: Insurance Licenses table for Coalition Insurance Solutions, Inc., national producer number 18419475, with producer and surplus-lines numbers for all 50 states and DC including California 0L76155, Georgia 196479, Texas 2199630 and 2205589, Pennsylvania 815731 and 817452, Colorado 539028 and Wisconsin 3000108852. Insurance Carriers table naming, with NAIC numbers, Allianz Underwriters Insurance Company 36420, Arch Specialty Insurance Company 21199, Ascot Specialty Insurance Company 45055, Ascot Insurance Company 23752, Aspen Specialty Insurance Company 10717, Chaucer Insurance Company DAC, Coalition Insurance Company 29530, Fireman's Fund Indemnity Corporation 11380, Fortegra Specialty Insurance Company 16823, Lloyd's of London, MSIG Specialty Insurance USA Inc. 34886, MS Transverse Specialty Insurance Company 41807, Steadfast Insurance Company 26387, Vantage Risk Specialty Insurance Company 16275 and Zurich American Insurance Company 16535. Accessed 2026-09-22.
  9. Insurance Producer Licenses. Corgi Insurance; Current complete Insurance Producer Licenses table for Corgi Insurance Services, Inc.; 50 rows covering 49 states and DC (DC 3003091619); no New Mexico row; no NPN or as-of date shown. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  10. About Hiscox US Insurance. Hiscox; Hiscox Insurance Company Inc. NAIC 10200 as Chicago, IL domiciled insurer admitted or licensed in all 50 states and D.C.; Hiscox Inc. as general agent and Lloyd’s coverholder for Syndicates 33 and 3624; surplus-lines placements through licensed surplus-lines brokers; A.M. Best rating statement. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  11. Licenses. ERGO NEXT Insurance; Current entity-by-state license table reopened 28 September 2026: 50 rows under Next First Insurance Agency, Inc., including Washington, DC; New York rows instead list Next Insurance Services PC-1423070 and AP Intego BR-1198885. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  12. Insurance Licenses by State. TechInsurance; Current state table; identifies TechInsurance as a division of Specialty Program Group LLC d/b/a SPG Insurance Solutions; lists DC 3000041536 and labels Rhode Island “Individual licenses,” without an agency license number. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  13. Licenses. Vouch; Effective 16 January 2025: Vouch Specialty Insurance Services, LLC, NPN 19926463; P&C table (50 states and DC); surplus-lines table includes Idaho 870820; footnote says Georgia and Idaho do not issue agency-level surplus-lines licenses; Idaho retained as producer-only due to conflict. Accessed 2026-09-15.

Updated .

This guide is informational and does not determine whether a policy is available or meets your needs. Editorial policy. To suggest a correction, email The General Average with a supporting source.

Product Liability Insurance Guides for Other States

Other coverage in TennesseeEvery coverage guide for Tennessee, plus the regulator and surplus-lines details.

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