Elopement and Wandering Claims

Elopement is a resident leaving a secured area unsupervised. It is not a separate coverage grant in most programs; it is a professional liability claim about assessment, supervision, and the physical security of the setting. What determines whether it is covered is usually the professional services definition, plus whatever exclusions attach around premises security or wandering.

Elopement produces some of the most severe outcomes in memory care, and the claim narrative is unusually damaging because it typically involves a documented history: a resident assessed as an elopement risk, a care plan calling for specific interventions, and a record of whether those interventions were performed. Plaintiff counsel will build the case from your own charting. The insurance question is narrower than the risk question. Confirm the professional services definition is broad enough to include supervision and the provision of a safe environment, and confirm no premises-security or wandering exclusion has been added. The larger response is operational: a documented elopement risk assessment, a functioning door alarm program, and a drill record are what underwriters price and what defense counsel uses.