What Businesses Should Know About Pollution Liability
Pollution losses have generally stabilized for the U.S. insurance industry in recent years, with annual incurred losses ranging between $350 million and $800 million, according to A.M. Best’s Market Review Report. Despite this, the costs to a business facing a Pollution Liability claim could be devastating to the company. An important fact to understand about pollution liabilities is that they can impact almost any type of business venture, from residential developments to shopping centers, commercial office parks, warehouses, manufacturers, and even Universities.
The most common reason business owners in the U.S. don’t purchase pollution liability insurance is not because they don’t think they have exposures, but rather because they assume their standard business insurance policy will cover any losses. General liability policies, however, typically don’t cover expenses for clean-up, remediation, and litigation resulting from the pollution.
In addition, there are a wide variety of exposures that are commonly overlooked by business owners. For example, an apartment complex might have environmental risks from underground heating oil tanks, lawn fertilizers, or other chemicals stores on site, such as for swimming pools. Pollution liability insurance will cover these risks and more, such as legal defense fees in case of litigation, clean-up efforts, accidents or oversights during operations, property transfer, and errors & omissions for clean-up companies and environmental consultants.
A common question about pollution liability insurance is how much it will cost. The price will vary depending on different factors, such as the type of business you own, the type and the amount of chemicals or hazardous materials used, and the disposal method your business has for hazardous waste.
At Provident Protection Plus Insurance Agency, we can answer your questions about pollution liability as well as New Jersey Business Insurance needs for a wide range of industries. Please contact us today for more information at (888) 990-0526.