Great American Insurance Group Expands Pollution Product Capacity

PRODUCT: Environmental liability coverage

COMPANY: Great American Insurance Group’s Environmental Division

A.M. BEST RATING: A+ (Superior)

AVAILABILITY: Coverage is available on an open-brokerage basis.

FOCUS: Ramifications of catastrophic events like the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and the Lac-Mégantic rail disaster still linger five years later. To offer a more robust environmental liability coverage option, Great American Insurance Group’s Environmental Division recently expanded capacity for pollution product lines.

According to the company, these new limits are among the highest in the marketplace, increasing from $35 million per loss and $70 million policy aggregate to $50 million per loss and $100 million policy aggregate, respectively.

UNDERWRITING: Great American’s Environmental Division provides three main policies: a premises pollution product for owned or leased locations; a contractors pollution product for most types of contractors on a practice or project basis; and a combined professional and contracting services product that covers E&O and pollution losses arising from the contractor’s work.

All three products provide coverage for bodily injury, property damage, cleanup costs, legal expenses, lead, asbestos, mold and legionella. Standard coverage enhancements are available, including additional limits for defense; no sublimits for emergency response; public relations expenses; and coverage for owned or leased locations, non-owned disposal sites and the transportation of the insured’s products or waste materials. Other coverage enhancements are available on a specific account basis.

The premises pollution product is written on a claims-made basis and provides additional coverage options arising from business interruption, contingent business interruption, biological hazards, incidental contracting services, excess of indemnity for known pollution conditions, both new and historical pollution conditions and both sudden and gradual pollution events. Policy terms are up to 10 years with extended reporting periods up to five additional years. For lenders, this product is also available up to a maximum 13-year policy term with the five-year extended reporting period.

The contractors pollution product provides coverage on an occurrence basis and also contains a first-party discovery trigger. Practice policies are usually written on an annual basis and project-specific coverage can be written with policy terms up to 10 years and a competed operations period of up to 12 years, or a combination of the two for up to 15 years.

The combined professional and contracting services product provides the coverage grants available under the contractors pollution policy, along with an additional coverage trigger for liability associated with acts, E&O arising from professional services, which is offered on a claims-made basis. The policy term for this combined policy is one year.

Legal disclaimer: Policies are underwritten by Great American Insurance Company and Great American E & S Insurance Company. Great American E & S Insurance Company is a Delaware Domestic Surplus Lines Insurer and is eligible, or not ineligible, to underwrite surplus lines insurance in all 50 states and the D.C. A.M. Best rating of Great American Insurance Company and its pooling affiliates affirmed March 20, 2015. Coverage description is summarized. Refer to the actual policy for a full description of applicable terms, conditions, limits and exclusions. This article is not intended as a solicitation or offer to sell an insurance product in a jurisdiction in which the solicitation, offer, sale or purchase thereof would be unlawful and is not intended to be distributed to insureds or potential insureds.

MINIMUM PREMIUM: $7,500 for premises or contractors pollution product; $12,500 for combined contractors pollution and professional product.

TARGET: Pollution policy solutions are available to a wide variety of commercial customers. The premises pollution policy is ideal for environmental facilities, real estate properties, chemical and petroleum facilities, commercial operations, both light and general industrial manufacturing plants, and municipalities and utilities.

The contractors pollution policy and the combined product are both ideal for many contractors, including alternative energy contractors, construction managers and general contractors.

COVERAGE TERRITORY: All 50 U.S. states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico.

CONTACT: Doug Stepenosky, senior vice president; Great American Insurance Group, 401 Plymouth Road, Suite 200, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462; 610-567-5062.

Ronimarie Acord is an IA contributor.