Property is insured in two main ways - open perils, or all risk perils, and named perils. Open perils cover all the causes of loss not specifically excluded or eliminated in the policy. Named perils require the actual cause of loss to be listed in the policy for insurance to be provided. The more common named perils include such damage causing events as fire, lightning, explosion and theft. Some of the more common exclusions include earthquake, flood, nuclear incidents, and war.

Casualty insurance is a broad category of insurance that includes almost any coverage that is not related to life, health, or property. Therefore it includes many insurance converages such as: 1)business continuation insurance 2) liability insurance 3) political risk insurance 4)terrorism insurance 5) fidelity and surety bonds.