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robintek

Jul 01
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The Pollution Exclusion and Misapplied Chemicals

By Business Protection Bulletin
An interesting claim case occurred at a day care center. An employee misapplied ammonia when cleaning a toilet seat causing rashes on several children.

The company reserved their rights on the claim based on the environmental exclusion in the general liability policy.

A reservation of rights essentially lets the insured know that the company will investigate the claim, but feels the company may not be responsible for payments due to an exclusion or coverage issue.

Although the reservation of rights is a stretch in this case, the action indicates the insurance industry desire to limit environmental coverage by exclusion and activism.

The ammonia was not released by accident, it was simply misapplied to the surface being cleaned. Other chemicals would have been a much better choice.

Suppose the ammonia application was followed by a second employee applying bleach to the same area. The chemical reaction can be very toxic. Would this action create an excluded event?

Under the coverage, the exclusion defines an event as sudden and accidental. The combination of the chemicals certainly is sudden and accidental even when both people purposely applied the chemical. The insurance carrier might apply the exclusion to this event successfully.

Certainly if both bottles spilled in a store room, the exclusion would apply.

The important consideration for business owners is that the insurance industry is frightened of environmental claims and is doing what it can to exclude them from liability policies. As astute risk managers, business managers must rethink strategies to eliminate environmental risk and transfer what’s left.

Train employees on chemical and cleaning supply usage. Restrict usage to knowledgeable employees. Store chemicals appropriately to avoid leaks and spills. Do not store incompatible chemicals in the same area. Check the MSDS for pertinent information.

Look into environmental liability coverage as a separate line of coverage. Even the most benign chemicals can become problematic in the long-run. Why is the insurance industry afraid of environmental claims? Think asbestos. Think about underground storage tanks.

 

Jul 01
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Build Passive Redundant Systems: site design loss prevention devices

By Construction Insurance Bulletin
Redundant systems involve anticipating future issues with your building. Do you have mission critical electricity needs, for instance, a hospital? Design a generator into the site.

What issues are raised with generators? Now you must consider a fuel source. An underground storage tank creates compliance issues. More importantly, it creates real problems when they leak. Secondary containment is one answer and should be implemented. (A second physical barrier around the tank which can hold the tanks’ volume should it leak.)

Consider installing a radon-type venting system below the slab too. Vapor intrusion is the next step in environmental compliance evolution. The back-up system can be installed for dollars during construction instead of thousands later. And suppose you do spill some fuel after the slab is poured? Wouldn’t that be a convenient time for a passive redundant system ready for use?

Rethink each system to anticipate realistic future problems. What part of the solution is practical, yet very cost effective, to install now?

Now, use this skill on the site itself. Silt fencing can be installed with the safety fencing, same posts and trench. Safety fencing around trees can be used for traffic control and defining lay-down space. Traffic control and storage logistics should be managed before the site opens for construction. Use fencing to define flow as well as its primary protection job.

Stormwater detention systems store a valuable commodity, water. Non-potable water has many uses on a job site. Use this source to water freshly installed plants, trees protected on site, dust control, or power washing mud off tires. There are ten thousand other uses, and ultimately, you need to drain those structures. Install a pump with a filter and leave it in the pond.

Rethink the many uses your temporary structures and features can help perform. Don’t waste any of them. The design phase tends to be task oriented. Look big picture and synergize your assets.

 

Jul 01
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Utility Marking: who’s responsible for errors?

By Construction Insurance Bulletin
You’ve marked the area in white paint where the new guardrail is to be installed. You’ve called your state utility marking service and wait the required time before sending a crew out to begin work. The supervisor mentions a fiber optic cable marker on site and wonders why the tickets have come back clear. Obviously, you can’t proceed until you’ve double checked these data.

Who would be responsible for cutting a fiber optic cable in this scenario? Even if you didn’t know, the test is often “should you have known?”

This test requires your site supervisors to check site plats for any utility easements, any visible marking signs within several hundred feet of your site, and interview the marking crew to request specific concerns.

Double check any laterals for water and sewer, is electrical service buried or overhead? How about private utilities – any lighting or signage on site still work?

The site supervisor needs to stake out any areas where extra caution is needed. Great due diligence saves time and money in the long run.

Fencing contractors run into the problem of unmarked or improperly marked utilities constantly. They bore holes to utility depth exactly where utilities turn into the site. They must bore holes every eight feet. The most professional fence installers hit phone and power lines. The key is to document your due diligence.

Take pictures of all utility markings before you dig. If you have any question whether the site has been mismarked or a specific utility has not been marked, take pictures of the markings currently on site, then call for the remark to document the difference.

The key is to have a high level of certainty that you know where the utilities are and they are properly marked. Next, document the efforts made to assure these conditions. Then dig, bore or plunge with confidence, and the knowledge you have done your best to avoid utility interruptions.

 

Jul 01
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Advantages of Extended Warranties on Completed Operations

By Construction Insurance Bulletin
Warranties provide an assurance to the owner that the contractor’s completed work will remain up to a specific standard for a defined period of time. The court system has set this time frame typically as one year in the absence of a written extension.

So to what advantage to you is it to extend that period of time?

Two advantages:
1. You can define the standard for the completed work in writing and have agreement from the owner.
2. You can create a duty for the owner to report potential issues early, becoming part of a process that shifts some of the potential public liability.

Implied warranties use phrases such as “workmanlike manner”. Tough to defend that standard because it changes over time, materials, and site conditions. Certainly basements were built in a workmanlike manner prior to radon gas accumulation discoveries. Once that potential issue is part of the equation, “workmanlike” changes.

Sink-swell soils forced a change in foundation design and build.

You can build to an excellent standard today; you cannot predict the future or know everything about the subgrade of the site. Use a warranty to assure the best possible work has been completed with today’s knowledge.

Transfer some of the reporting duties to the owner. After all, it is their site and they at least casually inspect it every day. The warranty spells out the conditions for the warranty to be in force. Require the owner to report frost heave in sidewalks or subsidence around drop inlets, or other early warning signs of trouble related to your specialty.

The bottom line is that both parties are better off fixing these problems early rather than after a trip and fall incident or a total collapse of a stormwater structure during a storm.

Consider this approach and discuss it with your attorney. Each state is a bit different in what they allow. If nothing else, these warranties help the owner understand the variables in your work. Reward them with some more time as a bonus for cooperation.

 

Jul 01
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Flying, Driving Robots to Globalization: New excess liability concerns

By Construction Insurance Bulletin
Excess liability, umbrella liability, high levels of general liability, whatever increases your limits of unknown liabilities, worries your insurer endlessly.

The modern world of commerce and delivery offers changes in liability just as fast as changes in how business is conducted and life is enjoyed.

Globalization moves labor to foreign lands which do not require many of the costs of employment that domestic manufacturing does. Supply chains may include many foreign countries with far-reaching impacts on liability.

Although superficially this cost savings sounds inviting, foreign governments insist on higher limits of liability for corporate citizenship regarding products and environmental issues.

Domestic carriers can be hesitant to accept new hazards. Foreign carriers are not admitted readily in the United States. Surplus lines carriers are more free to manuscript coverage, but Boards of Directors are less likely to allow non-admitted carriers as insurers.

This conflict can only be resolved by admitting more foreign competition to write what business now views as excess and surplus lines. Business must gain coverage for the most strict liability laws it encounters.

Delivery systems are more likely to include drone aircraft and self-driving vehicles in the near future. The vehicles are testing in several states for the open road now. They commonly deliver internal packages at companies and have done so for years.

Umbrella liability carriers concerns include sharing the skies with commercial passenger and freight delivery aircraft. Can so many signals interfere with or confuse flight controls?

The brave new world has insurance companies cowering and amending standard language to exclude some of these exposures.

With almost everything controlled by computer programs, whether air traffic control or your business’ reputation, cyber liability losses are becoming very limit.

Cyber attacks cost millions at a minimum. Diverting a robot, injuring your on-line presence, stealing data all can cause major umbrella losses, and the business liability is allowing itself to be robbed.

Excess and umbrella carriers need to prepare quickly for these new technological conditions. The market will change this decade.
Jul 01
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4 Ways to Manage Your Retirement Accounts When you Switch Jobs

By Employment Resources
When you switch jobs, you will probably also start a new retirement account. What happens to the old account? Consider managing that money in four ways.

 

1. Let Your Money Sit in Your Former Employer’s 401(k)
You usually have anywhere from 30 to 90 days to decide if this option is for you, and you can use it if you have at least $5,000 in your account. While this option is easy, especially if you have a good 401(k)plan, you may pay an extra fee to maintain the account, and you may not be able to access your funds for any reason until you retire.
2. Roll the Account Into a 401(k) Plan With Your New Employer 
Consolidating all your retirement money into one account makes keeping track of its performance easier for you. Check the plan’s investment options to make sure you have access to similar benefits and interests rates as your old plan offered.
3. Open an Individual Retirement Account (IRA)
An IRA gives you control of your retirement money. With it, you have the freedom and flexibility to choose any combination of investment stocks, bonds and mutual funds. IRAs often charge lower fees than 401(k) plans, too. You may owe taxes, though, if you move your 401(k) funds to an IRA. Ask your former employer to complete a direct transfer from the old 401(k) to your new IRA to avoid taxes.
4. Cash Out Your Old Account 
When you cash out your old retirement account, you have cash to repay debt or go on vacation. Remember, though, that you’ll have to pay income taxes on the full amount. You’ll also owe an early-withdrawal penalty on the amount you withdraw if it is before your 55th birthday. Emptying your account also means you’ll have less money for retirement.
When you switch jobs, you can handle your old retirement account in numerous ways. Talk to your financial advisor or human resources manager for additional information as you make the best decision for your future retirement.

 

Jul 01
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What to do if You’re Being Sexually Harassed at Work

By Employment Resources
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) received 6,862 sexual harassment reports in 2014. Whether it’s an isolated or repetitive incident reported by a man or woman, sexual harassment is a workplace issue every employee needs to understand.

What is Sexual Harassment?

A federal law, Title VII of the U.S. Civil Rights Act provides a definition of sexual harassment that applies to businesses that employ more than 15 people. The law states that sexual harassment is defined as:
1. Quid pro quo harassment happens when someone rewards an employee for sexual favors. An example is the supervisor who promotes an employee who sleeps with her.
2. Hostile work environment harassment occurs when an employee feels intimidated, offended or uncomfortable at work. Sexual comments or treating one sex better than the other are two examples.

While hostile work environment harassment is more difficult to prove than quid pro quo harassment, both are illegal. If you believe you’re a victim, take action.

Document Each Incident

A single incident where a coworker calls you a sexual name probably won’t get that coworker fired, but document the incident anyway. It can be used to build a case. Include details of the incident, including date, time, where it happened, who it involved, the witness’s names and what happened.

Report Harassment

Your employer should have a sexual harassment policy in place that includes a section on reporting harassment incidents. Check that policy so you know who to tell. Legally, your employer cannot retaliate against you for reporting harassment, so speak up when you experience or observe illegal sexual harassment.

Contact the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

As the federal agency that enforces anti-discrimination laws, the EEOC will investigate your complaint. You have 180 days after the harassment incident occurs to file a complaint. Consider filing as soon as possible, though, to put a stop to harassment in your workplace.

Sexual harassment is illegal. While your employer probably has Employment Practices Liability insurance, they should never allow harassing incidents to occur. Take action to prevent harassment in your workplace as you protect yourself and your coworkers.

 

Jul 01
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What Abercrombie & Fitch Can Teach You About Your Company’s Dress Code

By Employment Resources
In February 2015, Muslim teenager Samantha Elauf argued before the U.S. Supreme Court that clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch refused to hire her because of her head scarf. While Abercrombie had paid $71,000 in 2013 to two plaintiffs in similar cases, they argue that they didn’t know Elauf wore the scarf for religious reasons. Whether because of this case or not, Abercrombie had ended its appearance and sense of style hiring and “look policy” dress code by April 2015. So what can Abercrombie teach you about your company’s dress code?

Your Company Needs a Clear and Detailed Dress Code

Many companies need a standard dress code to maintain their brand image or comply with sanitation or safety guidelines. With thousands of world religions, though, most companies cannot know if an employee’s head covering, jewelry, body art or apparel has religious ties. Employers are also not yet required to ask if employees need religious accommodations.

That’s why employers are encouraged to be as clear as possible in regards to which types of clothing, hats, head coverings, jewelry, piercings and tattoos are allowed. The dress code should also outline a detailed dress code policy for employees in every position, particularly if it changes between positions in the company.

Likewise, employees can be open about any apparel that is worn for religious reasons. Open communication allows employers to respect an employee’s beliefs and make accommodations while maintaining the dress code.

How to Correct Dress Code Violations

When addressing dress code violations, companies can maintain an employee’s dignity. For starters, they should confront an employee in private. If the employee says the violation is because of religious reasons, the employer can start a discussion and possible change the dress code to accommodate the employee. Disciplinary action should never occur until after communication is initiated.

Most employers carry liability insurance, but they should still learn from Abercrombie & Fitch. The dress code should be detailed, in writing and taken seriously. If you need a religious apparel exemption to your company’s dress code, talk to your HR manager or supervisor as soon as possible.

 

Jul 01
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Ways to Combat Repetitive Stress Disorders at Work

By Employment Resources
Repetitive stress injury, also known as cumulative trauma disorder or repetitive stress disorder, accounts for almost 60 percent of job-related injuries. While computer usage contributes to the majority of RSDs, other repetitive motions are also to blame. Your employer is legally required to carry workers’ compensation insurance that covers these injuries, but you should know your risks so you can stay safe on the job.

What Kinds of Work Cause RSDs?

Any job that requires repetitive motions can be at risk for RSDs. Likewise, not taking frequent breaks puts you at risk. Here’s a short list of other jobs with a high RSD risk.
  • Assembly line work
  • Butcher or meat packer
  • Date entry professional
  • Driver
  • Front desk clerk
  • Grocery clerk or packer
  • Jack hammerer
  • Instrumentalist
  • Masseuse
  • Mechanic
  • Order puller
  • Painter
  • Pipe setter
  • Polisher
  • Receptionist
  • Sawer or cutter
  • Secretary
  • Shelf stocker
  • Writer

Forms of RSD

Carpal tunnel syndrome is probably the most familiar form of RSD. It causes swelling in the tunnel between the wrist’s bone and ligament and puts pressure on passing nerves. Additionally, other forms of RSDs include:
  • Cervical radiculopathy – neck disk compression
  • Myofascial damage – muscle tenderness and swelling
  • Tendinitis – tissue tears where bones and muscles connect
  • Tenosynovitis – irritation between tendon and surrounding sheaths

RSD Warning Signs 

Typically, your body is already affected by RSD when you start to feel symptoms. However, make sure you see the doctor as soon as possible if you experience fatigue or pain, tingling, numbness or weakness in any of your extremities.

RSD Prevention Tips

RSD can be prevented in two main ways. First, use ergonomic equipment. The right desk chair protects your wrists as you type, and a stepstool can ensure you stand properly at the cash register. Second, take frequent breaks. At least once every 30 minutes, step back and give your neck, shoulders, arms, wrists and hands a break if possible.

Your employer will follow OSHA guidelines and carry workers compensation insurance, but you also need to take responsibility for your health. Understand your risk and take action to prevent RSDs as you reduce injuries at healthy at work.

 

Jul 01
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As Costs Rise for Common Procedures, Make Sure You’re Insured

By Life and Health
Between 2011 and 2013, hospitals raised patient costs for various common procedures by as much as 20 percent, well over double the rate of inflation. Learn more about the increases and ways you can save money if you need one of these procedures.

Common Procedures and Cost Increases From 2011-2013

The following medical procedures saw an increase in costs between 2011 and 2013. For comparison, the cost Medicare covers is included. 
1. Atherosclerosis (arterial disease)
Average cost: $19,219, a 17.1% increase, Medicare pays $3,188
2. Back and neck procedures, excluding spinal fusion
Average cost: $36,215, a 22% increase, Medicare pays $5,818
3. Chest pain charges 
Average cost: $19,867, an 18.1% increase, Medicare pays $3,029
4. Circulatory disorders, except acute myocardial infarction with cardiac catheterization
Average cost: $39,093, a 15.1% increase, Medicare pays $6,189
5. Degenerative nervous system disorders 
Average cost: $28,033, a 17.2% increase, Medicare pays $6,020
6. Fractures, sprains, strains and dislocations other than femur, hip, pelvis and thigh
Average cost: $22,041, a 17.3% increase, Medicare pays $4,100
7. Medical back problems 
Average cost: $26,214, a 17.5% increase, Medicare pays $4,825
8. Percutaneous cardiovascular procedures without a coronary artery stent
Average cost: $75,331, a 17.2% increase, Medicare pays $12,743

How Can You Combat These Price Increases?

Despite cost increases, you can receive medical treatment at a reduced cost when you follow two steps.

First, use in-network providers who contract with your insurance company to offer services at a reduced rate. Since many insurance companies now feature narrow networks, check your policy carefully so you know exactly which doctors and procedures are covered.

Second, update your insurance policy. Choose a plan that covers the procedures you need or plan the procedure to take full advantage of your deductible. If you know you’ll need a costly procedure done in the future, shop around now for insurance that will cover it.

Talk to your insurance agent today to discuss your needs and the best coverage for you. With the right coverage, you can ensure you’re adequately insured despite rising medical costs.

 

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