Albany, N.Y. (September 15, 2020) –, Andrew D. Mendelson, FAIA, senior vice president, chief risk management officer at Berkley Alliance Managers, a Berkley Company, will participate in the panel discussion, “Weathering the Storm:…, About Berkley Alliance Managers, Berkley Alliance Managers is an alliance of specialty professional liability insurance underwriters and is a member company of Berkley, whose rated insurance company members are assigned A+ (…
August 24, 2020, , ENR: Why offer a new policy? What market niche or need are you looking to fill?, It, ’, s an innovation created by market forces. Whenever we talked to contractors and the brokers who represent them, one of the most common complaints was that there hasn’t been an insurance solution for…, What about the risk involved? Haven’t insurance companies been cautious about offering this faulty workmanship coverage because of the potential for significant losses?, The insurance business is about taking risks, but at the same time prudent risk selection is paramount. You have to be very careful in your deployment of the product and the exposure you accept. …, Who is your target market? What types of contractors are you working with, ?, Our focus, our appetite, has been insuring contractors in the nonstructural trades, mechanical, plumbing, painting, interior finishes. We are targeting firms in the nonstructural trades generating…, What are some of the scenarios under which your new faulty workmanship policy might provide coverage?, Say a painting contractor has been hired to paint the entire interior of a building. On all the concrete surfaces, the painting contractor failed to use the correct primer, or didn’t apply the…, What has been the response so far to your new product and how competitive is the market for faulty workmanship coverage?, The response has been very positive. There have been a couple of outlets announcing the coverage’s existence. We have also issued announcements targeting our brokerage community. Overall, however,…, What does the policy cost and how does it compare with the price of the standard ISO GCL policy?, Each insurance applicant has its own risk profile and we will offer a policy at a premium based upon that risk profile. As example, the premium for the faulty workmanship coverage, for a $1 million…, In what cases would the policy cover defective materials and products?, The responsiveness of the policy would depend on the specific facts and circumstances but, as an example, let’s take an electrical contractor who is hired to install the electrical system in a…, What’s the deal with the breach of warranty and breach of contract coverage angle in connection with this new policy?, Generally every contractor’s work is subject to certain warranties: those can be either express warranties commonly written into their contracts (for example, that work on the project will be…, What are the limits and sublimits of the policy?, The maximum outlay we are looking to initially deploy on a particular policy is $2 million. After binding an account for several years, we could potentially move to a higher maximum. I have no…, Final thoughts about the future?, One thing I have heard from brokerage partners and contractors is that this type of insurance is still relatively new compared to most other lines of insurance a contractor would buy. We have not…, ENR, Reprinted with permission from the August, 2020 issue of ENR. © 2020 Engineering News Record. All Rights Reserved.
April 21, 2020 According to the Design-Build Institute of America, design-build methodologies now represent 40% of the nonresidential construction marketplace and are likely to support more than $1…, How Does a Protective Policy Work?, A protective policy leaves the professional liability insurance policy of the architect alone and provides first-party indemnity to the contractor for damages incurred as a result of negligence by…, How Much Protective Insurance Is Enough?, Architects usually purchase $1 million or $2 million limits of liability on their professional liability insurance policies. When deciding on the limits of liability for a protective policy, the…, Not All Protective Policies Are the Same, Terms and conditions for protective policies vary widely. Each insurance carrier creates their own policy with unique coverages customized for each construction project. Therefore, it is important…, Insuring Construction Business Owners from Catastrophic Loss, A catastrophic event is always unexpected and unwelcome. Therefore, construction business owners should carefully assess their insurance protection and indemnity obligations before executing…, Construction Business Owner, Reprinted with permission from the April issue of Construction Business Owner. © 2020 Copyright Cahaba Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
By Derek E. Steffen | Tuesday, March 24, 2020 Businesses often look for ways to protect against the risks they confront on virtually every project from design and construction through completion.…, Professional Liability, By definition, a PL policy protects against the damages arising from negligent professional service acts, errors or omissions performed by or on behalf of the PL policy holder. Since an owner,…, Proper Risk Management, Every project no matter the size has its twists and turns. Even the best due diligence can obscure this fact. But there are steps businesses can and should take to prepare against the unknown. This…, About the Author, Derek E. Steffen – Assistant Vice President, Senior Claims Examiner, Berkley Alliance Managers, a Berkley Company Contact Info: [email protected] Derek has more than 20 years of diverse…, Construction Executive, Reposted from constructionexec.com, March 24, 2020, a publication of Associated Builders and Contractors. © Copyright 2020. All rights reserved By Will Jones | March 2, 2020 , PRODUCT:, Faulty Workmanship Liability , COMPANIES:, Berkley Construction Professional (Berkley CP), a Berkley Company , BEST RATING:, A+ (Superior) , AVAILABILITY:, Coverage is available on an open-brokerage basis. , FOCUS:, Until relatively recently, insurance solutions for the costs contractors incur to repair or replace defects found within their physical construction work have been virtually non-existent. Berkley CP’…, COVERAGE DETAILS:, Berkley CP’s Faulty Workmanship Liability solution is offered as a separate insuring agreement, subject to its own set of insurable limits, attached via an endorsement to their broad professional…, UNDERWRITING:, Berkley CP requests applicants seeking coverage to submit a supplemental faulty workmanship liability application and other documentation, such as general liability loss runs and a list of completed…, MINIMUM PREMIUM:, $5,000 , TARGET:, Contractors with total annual revenue up to $250 million and total annual revenues of up to $50 million derived from self-performed physical construction work. Types of work include electrical,…, COVERAGE AVAILABILITY:, All U.S. states , COVERAGE TERRITORY:, Worldwide while also complying with all trade or economic sanctions, laws or regulations of the United States including, but not limited to those administered by the U.S. Treasury Office of Foreign…, CONTACT:, Edward L. Sheiffele, Jr. , executive vice president, Berkley Construction Professional; 973-775-7492. , Will Jones, is IA managing editor., DOWNLOAD PDF Read article in , Independent Agent
December 12, 2019 , Protect your company from a variety of project challenges through detail & careful planning, Design-build is quickly becoming the mainstay project delivery method for the United States commercial construction industry. According to the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA), nearly…, Agreements Should Be Fair & Consistent Among All Parties, Every project consists of varying levels of responsibilities and risks. This extends from the professional services contracts negotiated with subconsultants to the prime agreements created with…, Scope of services, —It is imperative to make sure the scope of services defined in each agreement are clear and unambiguous. This includes the services performed for a basic fee, those that explicitly will not be…, Scheduling of services and deliverables, —Scheduling should be consistent throughout the project parameters and among all the parties involved. Subcontractor agreements should also reflect the requirements stated in the owner agreement,…, Billing and payment, —Billing and payment issues are often a major source of disputes. Each agreement should define the payment schedule and billing cycles, invoice approval and payment process, due dates, and interest…, Dispute resolution, —Dispute resolution terms must also be coordinated with the prime agreement. This is critical. Contractors need to know that if they are drawn into a claim, the entire design-build team will work as…, Indemnities, —Every contract should contain language stipulating the circumstances and amounts surrounding the reimbursement of funds to the extent that each party is responsible for such damages, liabilities or…, Time limits for legal action, —These should be consistent with the prime agreement. For instance, contractors should not give owners 5 years to file a claim while offering subcontractors 3 years. Be aware, too, that if the owner…, Ownership of instruments of service, —The copyright and ownership of plans and specifications are a matter of negotiation and should be defined within the prime agreement., Confidentiality requirements/nondisclosure agreements (NDAs), —NDAs should be consistent with the owner-prime agreement. Owners have become increasingly protective regarding the access to confidential and proprietary information. Make sure that any restrictions…, Construction Business Owner, Reprinted with permission from the December issue of Construction Business Owner. © 2019 Copyright Cahaba Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Roswell, Ga. (November 11, 2019) –, Berkley Construction Professional, a division of Berkley Alliance Managers, a Berkley Company, introduces Faulty Workmanship Liability coverage that fits together with the ISO Commercial General…, About Berkley Construction Professional, Berkley Construction Professional specializes in construction professional liability and pollution insurance for construction-related industry exposures. Berkley Construction Professional is a…
Roswell, Ga. (November 5, 2019) –, Ed Sheiffele, senior vice president at Berkley Construction Professional a division of Berkley Alliance Managers, a Berkley Company, will participate in a panel discussion detailing Real Estate…, protective professional indemnity, and project specific professional and pollution liability insurance policies. Ed Sheiffele has more than two decades of insurance industry experience. He has successfully established and led…, About Berkley Construction Professional, Berkley Construction Professional specializes in construction professional liability and pollution insurance for construction-related industry exposures. Berkley Construction Professional is a…
Does a carrier’s claims philosophy really matter?, September 25, 2019 Have advances in contractors professional liability (CPrL) insurance policies created differentiation in the efficiency of claim resolution? In my mind, the answer is a…, Protective coverage, CPrL insurance carriers have incorporated into their policies protective language that facilitates and expedites claims resolution. The intent is to resolve disputes quickly during construction and…, Proactive coverage, An innovative coverage, proactive has, for all intents and purposes, bypassed the entire litigation process with respect to design liability. With proactive, a CPrL insurance carrier receives all…, Mitigation coverage, Mitigation of damages or rectification (mitigation) coverage has further benefited projects in need of prompt resolution of issues so that construction can continue. While mitigation coverage may…, Faulty workmanship coverage, The recent release of a new CPrL product offering non-negligence-based faulty workmanship is taking the evolution of coverage in an entirely different direction. This innovative coverage addresses…, Rough Notes, Reprinted with permission from the September issues of Rough Notes. © 2019 All Rights Reserved.
August 23, 2019 Design-build has become a widely-used construction project-delivery method due to the ability to complete projects quickly and efficiently while also reducing costs. However, along…
