ENVIRONMENTAL CLAIMS HANDLING AND EVALUATION
Insurance support is the single-largest component of Preferred’s workflow. Our staff is highly qualified, with first-hand knowledge of the insurance, financial, and environmental issues that typically exist for a complex claim. Our expertise in performing comprehensive environmental investigations, construction support and turnkey remediation services, provides us with a unique knowledge base to fully understand the dynamics and costs associated with environmental insurance claims and to control their costs
Once assigned an environmental claim, Preferred’s main goal is to obtain regulatory closure as cost-effectively and fast as possible, while balancing the individual needs of each insurance carrier and their relationship with their insured. Our continued work at contaminated properties throughout the Northeast provides us with invaluable, up-to-date knowledge, regarding clean-up trends, presumptive remedies and evolving technologies. Upon claim initiation, our professionals immediately begin working with the claim handlers to rapidly identify a clear definition of critical paths, carrier and insured expectations and timelines. Budgets for the necessary claim response are provided rapidly for the carrier’s review and approval, and the work is scheduled in concert with the involved parties. This timely response and up-front communication is critical for getting a clear understanding of the scope of the claims evaluation, and creating “no surprise” expense control during claims handling. Preferred has an internal standardized high-level claims information gathering process to allow for unforeseen aspects of the claim to be documented with a laser focus on the potential for subrogation and the collection of supporting data. Carriers have reopened claims years later and Preferred has been able to retroactively produce complete files with the required information. Preferred has worked with experts at supplemental forensics, including age dating, metallurgical studies, corrosion models, plume delineation, product differentiation, MTBE and emerging contaminants. Our Environmental Engineer has direct experience from Superstorm Sandy in working on FEMA claims differentiating homeowner coverage from flood coverage, and performing detailed property conditions assessments that are part of environmental damage and causation.
ENVIRONMENTAL UNDERWRITING SUPPORT
• Pre-Claim: Preferred is very familiar with all forms of environmental risk transfer, and we have been the architect of numerous pollution legal liability policies. Our ability to summarize the critical aspects of due diligence and environmental risk are key to designing effective pollution policies based upon the known and unknown environmental risks and/or the potential for these risks to evolve into a future claim, establishing appropriate deductible levels, cost to cure, etc.
• Preferred has worked with numerous construction bridge loan firms, providing expedited review of due diligence packages. Preferred has been required to provide a high-level risk transfer evaluation, with combined proposals for escrow, insurance solutions with recommendations for further investigation or additional engineering controls to limit the potential for losses and environmental liability.
• Post-Claim: As a due diligence expert, Preferred is extremely adept at determining what environmental information was reasonably obtainable under FOIL, all appropriate inquiry, and the accuracy of information provided in the insurance applications. Preferred is adept at the use of on-line and private databases that can be used to examine claims filings and establish timelines associated with environmental liabilities. Preferred routinely uses this information to proportion liability, post-claim, and recommend subrogation if appropriate. If no due diligence is required during the initial phase of post-claim work, Preferred handles claims as described in this document.
REMEDIAL OVERSIGHT AND PERFORMANCE
• Preferred routinely is requested to provide oversight services and commentary on other remedial contractors and consultants. We’ve saved our insurance carriers tens of thousands of dollars (between 10-25%) on projects wherein the technical scope was “reworked” to create cost savings. Preferred has been able to limit a tremendous amount of unnecessary work during investigation or remediation. We have successfully limited this on the proposal phase or after the fact, during invoice review, wherein erroneous quantities of equipment and manpower were invoiced incorrectly. We have revised numerous contractor proposals to reflect the emergency versus non-emergency services, improved technical approach to completing remediation, and identified missing elements (to improve reserve requirements).
• Due to our extraordinary relationship with several carriers, after the initial claim investigation, Preferred is selected as the remediation contractor of choice for performing remediation and achieving closure. We have successfully completed residential and commercial real property remediation services ranging from simple drywell or leaching structure cleanouts to completely structurally supporting residences and removing subsurface contamination, in excess of $400,000. We’ve worked closely with our carriers to determine if the cost of remediation is in excess of the worth of the development on the real property and has performed complete and partial demolition of structures to expedite closure.
• Preferred has also taken over numerous remedial projects wherein either remediation costs have spiraled, projects have lost momentum or costs were deemed to be excessive for relative to the required remediation. We have been able to achieve regulatory closure using in-situ chemical injection techniques in both unconsolidated and fractured bedrock, after years of trial and error in the use of these chemicals by the consulting community. We are experts at designing an appropriate remedial program and have years of experience of bringing the right level of remediation to a project.
REVIEW OF CONSULTANT & CONTRACTORS INVOICES AND PROPOSALS
• Preferred is responsible for the review of remediation contractor/consultant proposals and invoices as well as trucker emergency response claims for the entire nation for a national carrier involving third-party contamination (soil and groundwater) due to petroleum products and other regulated chemicals on real property and roadways.
• Preferred evaluates the underlying agreements with response companies and/or arrangements made independently by the insured (trucker, parcel services, sanitary truckers, cesspool haulers and multi-media transporters) to provide an appropriate level of expectations and realistic commentary on the claim.
• The need for emergency services versus non-emergency continuing response is evaluated and used to modify invoices relative to reducing overtime, non-essential equipment, and unnecessary services.
• Preferred has worked with its carriers to successfully negotiate substantial cost savings, after the fact.
SUBROGATION AND FACT WITNESS SERVICES
• Preferred’s first step in any claim handling is to look for causation and preserve evidence for potential subrogation. Every project, regardless of the initial fact pattern, is viewed with respect to potential subrogation. Preferred has worked with numerous external and internal counsel to provide basis for subrogation. In the cases of residential oil spills, this process has been very effective against several fuel oil companies as well evaluating liability on behalf of tank installers, service companies, and defective equipment.
• Preferred has provided fact witness services, when required, for our insurance clients. Our experts have testified at trial and dispute resolution hearings and have provided opinions on issues related to damages, fate and transport, and historical knowledge.
• Preferred has also participated in litigation assistance for MTBE, gasoline and PCE claims.