Reviewed by Hugo Gonçalves, Founder & Risk Management Specialist at Adler & Rochefort · Degree in Business Management (University of Hertfordshire) · Ongoing training at the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII), London.
Kidnap and ransom insurance is rarely about the ransom. Its real value lies in the specialist crisis-response consultancy that becomes available the moment a family member is taken, threatened or extorted: people who have handled these situations many times, who work alongside the police, and who advise the family through every decision that follows.
We arrange K&R and extortion cover for families living in, or travelling from, Portugal and Spain. The cover is placed through specialist markets and co-brokerage partners who write this class, and it is arranged with the discretion the subject requires.
The exposure is not confined to the very wealthy. It follows visibility, travel patterns and the kind of business a family is known to own.
In both countries, the most frequent events are not classic long-duration kidnaps. They are extortion demands (increasingly delivered online), threats against children or staff, express kidnappings in which a victim is held for hours and forced to withdraw cash or make transfers, and incidents that happen abroad while a family member is travelling. A good policy treats all of these as insured events, not only the kidnap itself.
The law in both countries allows this insurance to be bought, and in both the policy is written on a reimbursement basis, subject to the applicable law, including sanctions rules. The practical differences lie elsewhere:
| Portugal | Spain | |
|---|---|---|
| Where exposure concentrates | Lisbon, Cascais, Estoril and Comporta; growing profile of international residents | Madrid, Marbella and Sotogrande, Barcelona and the Balearics; larger and longer-established HNW community |
| Authorities involved | Polícia Judiciária handles kidnapping and extortion | Policía Nacional or Guardia Civil, depending on the location |
| Typical pattern | Online extortion, threats and travel-related incidents | Express kidnapping, home invasion with coercion, online extortion and travel-related incidents |
| How the policy is placed | Through specialist markets via a co-brokerage partner, under EU rules | The same, under the EU freedom to provide services |
Wordings differ in detail. These are the elements we look for before recommending one.
Fees and expenses of a specialist 24/7 response consultancy, usually with a high or unlimited limit. This is the most valuable part of the cover and the reason most families buy it.
Reimbursement of a ransom or extortion payment made under duress, within the policy limit and subject to the applicable law.
Loss of a ransom payment while it is being delivered, by theft, destruction or disappearance.
Short-duration abductions, wrongful detention and hijack of a vehicle, vessel or aircraft in which an insured person is travelling.
Threats to harm a family member or damage property, and extortion demands made through hacked accounts, stolen data or devices.
Family members, household staff and guests, as defined in the policy, wherever they are in the world.
Medical and psychological care after release, rest and rehabilitation, travel for relatives, legal costs, and loss of personal income during the event.
Briefings before travel to higher-risk destinations, provided by the response consultancy as part of the policy.
Underwriters in this class ask few questions, but they need accurate answers. Everything is handled in writing and shared only with the markets we approach on your instructions.
Before any proposal you receive a written note: what the exposure actually is, where your current policies stop, and what a well-placed policy should contain. It is yours to keep whether or not you proceed.
K&R is written by a small number of specialist markets. We place it through co-brokerage partners who work with those markets every day, and we tell you in writing how the placement is structured. We never publish who our clients are.
The same person handles the file from the first conversation through placement, every renewal and any claim. You never re-explain your circumstances to somebody new.
If something happens, we notify the insurer, assemble the documentation, and stay with the claim until it is settled, in writing, with a record of every step.
Adler & Rochefort is an ASF-registered insurance intermediary, not tied to any insurer, with its head office in Lisbon and clients across Portugal and Spain. No client names are published, and information about what you own or how you live goes only to the markets approached on your instructions.
Tell us briefly what you would like to protect, and where. We reply in writing, in English, within 24 hours, with a first assessment and the information an underwriter will need. No call is required at any stage.
By sending this form you agree to us using your details to prepare and discuss the cover, in line with our privacy policy. We never sell your data, and we do not publish client names or details of what we insure.
We will reply in writing within 24 hours.