The Hartford Offers New Insurance Policy to Protect Directors & Officers

Priority Protection^SM Plus is a streamlined 'Side A' policy with enhanced coverage for those in the boardroom and beyond

HARTFORD, Conn., August 16, 2006 - The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE: HIG), responding to the evolving protection needs of corporate directors and officers, has introduced a next generation "Side A" directors and officers (D&O) insurance policy that addresses these emerging risks for executives in public and private organizations of all sizes.

Priority Protection^SM Plus is a streamlined, state-of-the-art insurance policy that broadly protects directors and officers from personal liability when a company cannot or will not provide them with indemnification. Referred to as Side A, this type of policy is needed in situations like business insolvency or when a company is prohibited by law or unwilling to pay for judgments against directors and officers.

"Regular D&O policies were originally designed to protect the executives who run a business, but that coverage eroded when D&O policies expanded to cover the business entity as well," said John A. Rafferty, a vice president at Hartford Financial Products (HFP), an underwriting unit of The Hartford. "Today, businesses buy significant amounts of dedicated Side A D&O coverage to meet the fundamental mission of broadly protecting the individual directors and officers from financial harm. In fact, no D&O program is considered complete today without a dedicated Side A tower."

The Hartford first introduced Side A coverage in 2004, launching its original Priority Protection policy. Now, the insurer has applied its experience as one of the largest D&O writers and incorporated valuable feedback from brokers and clients to make this new version a concise, clearly-written and versatile policy designed for public and private organizations of all sizes.

"When directors and officers are evaluating their affiliation with a particular business, they tend not only look at the D&O insurance but they also consider the insurer providing that coverage since they could be putting their personal assets on the line," said Michael Price, a vice president of HFP. "Priority Protection Plus is supported by a team of underwriting and claims professionals known for their expertise and integrity and backed by the financial strength and security of one of America's leading insurance companies." The policy provides a maximum amount of coverage and flexibility while using a minimum number of endorsements. Among its features, Priority Protection Plus offers:

Comprehensiveness: "Broad Form" format that builds coverages into the policy so there is no need to add many endorsements for essential protection.
Clarity: Policy is easy to understand and exclusions are limited and clearly stated.
Flexibility: Easily converted from Broad Form primary protection to an "Excess and Difference-in-Condition" (DIC) policy by simply checking one box on the declarations page. It is also easily converted to independent director-only coverage through the issuance of a single endorsement.
Seamlessness: If the DIC feature is elected and the underlying insurance program does not pay, the policy drops down to fill coverage gaps.
Protection: Exclusions based on an individual's misconduct or because they personally profited from wrongdoing are triggered only after a final judgment against them.
Fairness: State-of-the-art "severability" language preserves coverage for individuals who are unaware of misrepresentations in the policy application. In addition, the policy can never be rescinded.

For more information about Priority Protection Plus or The Hartford's other financial products, brokers or agents can visit www.hfpinsurance.com or call Patricia Fitzgerald, national marketing director, at 212-277-0457.

Coverage is provided by the member companies of The Hartford and may not be available in all states. See policy for actual coverage wording.

The Hartford, a Fortune 100 company, is one of the nation's largest financial services and insurance companies, with 2005 revenues of $27.1 billion. The Hartford is a leading provider of investment products, life insurance and group benefits; automobile and homeowners products; and business property and casualty insurance. International operations are located in Japan, Brazil and the United Kingdom. The Hartford's Internet address is www.thehartford.com.

Some of the statements in this release may be considered forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. We caution investors that these forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, and actual results may differ materially. Investors should consider the important risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ. These important risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, those discussed in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, our 2005 Annual Report on Form 10-K and the other filings we make with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We assume no obligation to update this release, which speaks as of the date issued.