What is happening in the environmental insurance market today?

Understanding where the market is and how it continues to evolve requires expert expertise that can identify what is changing and what the impact of that change is. To reach the goals of the environmental sector, Cristian Altobelli, environmental underwriter at Markel Canada, said: Insurance business We discuss the recent triggers for environmental coverage, the financial fines and penalties resulting from environmental exposure, and how Markel’s environmental team earns the trust of its broker partners.

Looking specifically at how the contract industry is being affected by new environmental exposures, Altobelli has seen a confluence of contractually mandated catalysts and a growing interest in environmental risk management practices. emphasized. This has led to more contractors doing independent environmental protection, he said.

Please look at the details: Learn more about Markel’s environmental insurance solutions today

“On the contractually obligatory side,” he said. Potential contractual requirements they may face.

“When faced with this requirement, some brokers have turned to practice/annual contractor pollution liability policies, a potential cost-saving measure, rather than running policies for multiple projects where possible, and have clients We are using it as an opportunity to commit

During this process, interviews became more sought after, leading to more in-depth conversations. Critically, this also removes the need for applicants/risk managers to reassess their entire environmental/pollution exposures to address coverage gaps that they previously believed did not justify the price of coverage. It leads to rationalization.

“Moving both into the future, we can also foresee the contracting industry’s focus on the emergence and emergence of renewable energy technologies and the unique exposures they bring,” added Altobelli. “As the desire/demand for renewable energy sources grows, we can reasonably expect that government-encouraged projects will continue to be built in this sector.

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“The types of potential renewable projects vary in size, scope and complexity, presenting challenges and opportunities for both brokers and underwriters who are able to identify exposures, while at the same time ensuring that applicants are comfortable We will provide bespoke compensation so that you can pursue it.”

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Giving examples of several claim areas to watch, Altobelli said one type of claim that is expected to increase as the impacts of climate change become more apparent involves stormwater and runoff from construction projects. said it would. He said that as different sectors of society become more developed and their infrastructure strengthened, they lose more and more natural green space to absorb excess rainfall.

As such, in the event of a potential rainfall event, this could lead to inadequate or underestimated erosion/sediment control and stabilization measures, allowing rainfall to accumulate at the worksite. can pick up sensitive chemicals, liquids, or materials and transport them to third-party locations and/or sewage systems and nearby sensitive ecological receptors.

“The impacts of climate change have created environments that can lead to increased mold growth, or have caused excessive rainfall events, bringing water to many facilities that historically had no water. We would expect to see an increase in indoor air quality/microbe-related claims because of the potential influx, which should not create an environment for mold to grow,” he said.

As Canada’s environmental legal and regulatory landscape continues to evolve, Altobelli said he expects increased attention and quantification of ecosystem services (This can be understood as the direct and indirect services provided by the natural environment). This provides a cost base to more robustly quantify the impact of pollutant emissions.

“Needless to say, I expect environmental fines and penalties to continue to be pervasive in understanding applicant exposures,” he said. “For those interested, Ontario publishes an annual Environmental Penalty Report (https://data.ontario.ca/dataset/environmental-penalty-annual-report) and similarly the Government of Canada Environmental Penalty Register List (https://data.ontario.ca/dataset/environmental-penalty-annual-report) Both of these sources are what various entities can do in their operations and what their actions/actions are. It provides context regarding the financial penalties associated with non-compliance.”

For Markel, creating a value proposition that stands out from the wider market is a combination of several key factors, including a great team and differentiated service delivery.

Over the past five years, Markel’s Environmental Impairment Liability (EIL) team has undergone a transformation. Altobelli firmly believes it has brought its level of offering to several major markets, both in terms of product suite and coastal reach in Canada. This includes multiple bilingual his team his members who can accommodate both English and French speaking requirements.

“In terms of differentiation, the Markel EIL team’s greatest added value is the mindset of being bolstered when it matters,” he said. “Our ability to quickly interact with our partners, whether it be last-minute requests for interviews, drafting manuscripts, highly bespoke amendments to policies, or offering alternative terms should the current market for brokers fail to meet expectations, Shine during these moments.

“This ability to be flexible when needed and to optimally position partners for success reiterates Markel’s commitment to a mutually beneficial relationship that reduces unnecessary inertia in any insurance transaction. Our focus on honesty and transparency is a key part of Markel’s environmental team’s dealings.”

Key to Markel’s proposal, Altobelli said, is its focus on partnerships with brokers, and the team aims to respond quickly when given the opportunity to consider risks posed by brokers. . Thanks to this approach, Markel has earned and will continue to earn the trust of his partners, brokers who trust the company in their business and, by extension, are part of their client relationship.

“By focusing on empowerment in underwriting and integrity in trading, we are able to serve our broker partners in the most effective way possible with access to Markel environmental underwriters,” he said. represents.”

Learn more about Markel’s environmental insurance solutions today

Christian Altobelli joined Markel Canada in 2019 as an Associate Underwriter in the Environment Division. In 2020, he was promoted to Markel’s Canadian Environmental Underwriter and in 2022, he was named one of the insurance business’s highlights.