Source: http://www.lexology.com, March 10, 2014 By: Douglas R. Burnett and John J. Reilly, Squire Sanders Incidents involving chemicals and hazardous substances in transit may bring significant liabilities for cargo owners, manufacturers, shippers and purchasers. In many instances these liabilities are not fully understood. Cargo owners, even if they rely on services of professional carriers, are […]

Source: http://www.lexology.com, March 13, 2014 by: Wiley Rein LLP Applying Massachusetts law, the Superior Court of Massachusetts has held that an insurer is not required to demonstrate prejudice from a late notice under a claims-made-and-reported policy.  Catlin Specialty Ins. Co. v. Am. Superconductor Corp., 2014 WL 840693 (Mass. Super. Jan. 29, 2014). The insurer issued claims-made […]

Source: http://www.ibamag.com, March 14, 2014 Editor’s note: In the fifth and final installment of this week’s In Focus series on environmental insurance, David Brereton, EIL Program Manager at Denver-based Freberg Environmental Insurance, provided the following case studies displaying the variety of businesses that are now seeing the need for environmental coverage. Underwriters are often asked […]

Source: http://www.southwestjournal.com, March 12, 2014 By: Dylan Thomas Apartment owners are in a lawsuit with the city over pumping of groundwater The owners of an Uptown apartment building sued by the city in December for illegal groundwater discharge on March 6 filed suit against three firms that provided engineering and design services for the project. […]

Source: http://www.cullmantimes.com, March 14, 2014 By: Tiffeny Owens A lawsuit brought by seven Hanceville landowners against Hanceville Water Works and Sewer Board and the companies hired to run the waste water treatment plant is set to go to trial next month. The property owners are suing over the alleged repeated dumping of raw sewage on […]

Source: http://www.insurancejournal.com, March 12, 2014 Although most insurers providing professional liability insurance for architects and engineers sought to raise rates last year, the size of the increases generally failed to meet their expectations. Nevertheless, nearly all leading insurers offering this specialty coverage did see premium growth in 2014 mainly from new business, an improving economy […]

Source: http://www.ibamag.com, March 13, 2014 By: Brian Anderson Nearly every commercial client with a fixed facility carries some level of environmental risk, making them all strong candidates for Environmental Impairment Liability (EIL) coverage. As most businesses don’t currently have this coverage, this is a big opportunity for agents. Standard EIL coverage addresses both on- and […]

Source: http://www.wncn.com, March 11, 2014 By: Jonathan Rodriguez The Environmental Protection Agency updated the Wake Forest community impacted by well water contaminated with the cancer causing chemical called TCE. The EPA has been holding similar meetings to update families on the status of their water. A WNCN investigation revealed that the state knew chemicals were present […]

Source: http://www.wvgazette.com, March 11, 2014 By: Eric Eyre Cutting off cleanup compensation will leave houses vacant, landlords say State legislators’ decision this year to do nothing to reduce methamphetamine labs while no longer reimbursing landlords for meth cleanup costs could leave the state with hundreds of vacant and toxic properties, the president of the West […]

Source: Star Tribune (MN), March 12, 2014 Posted on: http://envfpn.advisen.com The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has postponed a widely-anticipated decision on sulfate pollution, saying it needs more time to study variables in wild rice production and water quality before proposing any new rules. Environmentalists and Minnesota Indian tribes had clashed with officials from the […]

Source: Star Tribume (MN), March 12, 2014 Posted on: http://envfpn.advisen.com Luoma Egg Ranch, an egg producer near Finlayson, Minn., was fined $95,000 by state pollution regulators for violations stemming from chicken manure spills. Luoma failed to report and attempted to cover up the liquid manure discharges from its egg-laying operation, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency […]

Read here about a coal company in Kentucky that has been fined thousands for illegally dumping debris into Appalachian streams.