{"id":2829,"date":"2022-05-16T22:29:17","date_gmt":"2022-05-16T22:29:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/estrategist.com\/website\/members\/?p=2829"},"modified":"2022-05-16T22:29:17","modified_gmt":"2022-05-16T22:29:17","slug":"scrap-metal-recyclers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/estrategist.com\/members\/scrap-metal-recyclers\/","title":{"rendered":"Scrap Metal Recyclers"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>What is a Pollutant?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Any material, substance, liquid, product, etc\u2026 which is introduced into an environment for other than its intended use \/ purpose.\u00a0 In other words, something that ends up where it doesn\u2019t belong.\u00a0 Fresh water, cheese, and milk have all been classified as pollutants by Insurance Carriers under various circumstances.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Most commercial insureds assume that claims arising from their operations are covered by the general liability policy.\u00a0 However, claims resulting from a \u201cpollution incident\u201d are excluded from most general liability policies, which leaves commercial insureds with gaps in coverage.\u00a0 What pollutants are impacting your business?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Environmental Exposures Impacting Scrap Metal Recyclers\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><b>Include, but are not limited to<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">:\u00a0 PFAS Chemicals;\u00a0 Storm water runoff;\u00a0 Asbestos or lead containing materials;\u00a0 Pollution events as a result of a fire;\u00a0 Halon releases from fire suppression equipment;\u00a0 Spills and leaks from the storage and handling of material containers, drums\u2026from vehicles;\u00a0 Metals with radioactive contamination;\u00a0 Illegal placement of waste on your property by an unknown 3<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">rd<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> party (Midnight Dumping);\u00a0 Air emissions;\u00a0 Vapor Intrusion;\u00a0 Above and underground storage tanks;\u00a0 Pollutants on neighboring properties migrating onto yours;\u00a0 Waste storage\/handling practices;\u00a0 Water and waste water treatment operations;\u00a0 On site storage of raw materials;\u00a0 Lubricant oils;\u00a0 Product cleaning and chemical treatments; \u00a0 Unsealed truck ramps and work yards;\u00a0 Uncertainties about the historical use and conditions of property and neighboring properties;\u00a0 Inadequate or no auditing of hazardous and non-hazardous waste handlers, transporter and disposal companies;\u00a0 Nuisance odors;\u00a0 Utilities that cross property;\u00a0 Natural resource damages;\u00a0 Silica;\u00a0 Mold;\u00a0 Tenants causing a pollution event at one of your leased locations;\u00a0 and more\u2026\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Quick Facts<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are upwards of 2,000 different contaminants associated with the plastics industry. Examples of some of these contaminants are; antioxidants, asbestos, fillers and reinforces, formaldehyde, heat stabilizers, lubricants, peroxides, preservatives, ammonia, crude oil, flammable retardants, solvents, styrene.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Per the EPA, five of the top six chemicals that are regulated as hazardous waste are commonly produced during the manufacturing and recycling of plastics and electronics.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Environmental Claim Scenarios \u2013 Operating Locations<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A recycling facility caught on fire. While fighting the fire, the fire department\u2019s high-pressure hoses forced melting plastics, metals, insulation, roofing, drywall, chemicals, and other materials onsite to comingle, creating a toxic \u201csludge\u201d. Some of the \u201csludge\u201d flowed onto neighboring properties. The recycler was responsible for clean-up, 3<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">rd<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> party property damage &amp; business interruption, and natural resource damages, which totaled over $4,000,000.\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">NOTE: fire departments are immune from liabilities that may arise from their services.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A scrap metal recycling facility was sued when contamination was discovered in the drinking water at a neighboring property. After further investigation, it was determined that the recycler\u2019s property was not the source of the contamination. The recycler was eventually released from the lawsuit. However, they had to expense more than $40,000 in legal defense fighting the suit.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A scrap metal recycler had a load contaminated with radioactive cesium get past their detectors and contaminated their line and bag house.\u00a0 Cost to package, ship and store the waste exceeded $10,000,000<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">During the night, an unknown party illegally placed drums of hazardous waste at a scrap metal recycling facility.\u00a0 The containers were not leaking, but had to be tested and properly disposed of at the property owner\u2019s expense. Total cost of the claim for the recycling facility was roughly $50,000.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Over a period of several decades, a scrap metal recycling facility performed outdoor crushing operations on an unpaved area of the property. Every time it rained or snowed, small amounts of oils and other pollutants washed off the materials \/ machinery and into the soil. During re-development at a neighboring property, pollutants were discovered and traced back to the recycler\u2019s property. After further investigation, additional neighboring properties we\u2019re found to be impacted as well. Investigation, remediation, legal defense, and 3<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">rd<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> party business interruption cost the recycling facility over $4,000,000.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong>Environmental Claim Scenarios \u2013 Transportation\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A scrap metal recycler hired a waste hauler transport its waste materials to a 3<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">rd<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> party disposal site. During transportation, the hauler got into an accident, causing the truck to overturn and spill its load into a nearby stream.\u00a0 Under CERCLA, the recycler must contribute for their apportionment of the load for cleanup cost since federal law states that you own your waste from cradle-to-grave.\u00a0 Cost to settle the claim for the recycler was $100,000.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While picking up a vehicle to tow back to their facility, the driver for the scrap metal company backed into an aboveground fuel storage tank. The fuel escaped the tank\u2019s secondary containment, and released into the surrounding area. Total cost of investigation and remediation was over $150,000.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong>Overlooked Benefits of Environmental Liability Insurance<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Unlike most liability exposures impacting scrap metal recyclers, pollution losses are not a frequency risk, but rather a severity risk. Since all scrap metal recyclers have numerous environmental liabilities, consideration needs to be given to the economies of scale afforded with Environmental Liability Insurance as part of your risk transfer strategy, versus self-insurance.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Furthermore, most commercial insureds only consider the remediation costs associated with a pollution event. However, often the clean-up costs are far less than other costs that can arise from the loss. Such as;\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Defense Costs<\/b><b>:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0 Environmental liabilities are relatively new &amp; very litigious.\u00a0 Even if you do nothing wrong you can still get named in a suit &amp; have to expense defense costs i.e. legal fees &amp; environmental investigations.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Claim Management<\/b><b>:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0 All policies come with specialists to assist you in handling a claim.\u00a0 Who is in charge of communications, public relations, emergency response, government compliance, financial management, third party claims for bodily injury, property damage, natural resource damages\u2026.?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Third Party Liability<\/b><b>:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0 Often, the cost to clean up the environmental condition is far less than the associated claims from third parties for bodily injury, property damage, and business interruption.\u00a0 You need to look at your client\u2019s and neighbors that can be impacted if you cause an environmental condition.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Environmental Liability Insurance Products\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><b>Premise Pollution Liability (PPL)<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PPL provides coverage for economic loss caused by pollution that actually or allegedly originate from an owned or leased location.\u00a0 Sometimes referred to as Environmental Impairment Liability (EIL), this coverage is for those who own, operate, lease, or have any other insurable interest in real property \/ the operations taking place at that property.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Policies typically include coverage for on\/off-site cleanup, legal defense, 3<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">rd<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> party bodily injury and property damage, 3<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">rd<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> party business interruption, legal defense, Non-Owned Disposal Site Liability (NODS), Transportation Pollution Liability (TPL), and aboveground storage tanks. PPL policies can also cover underground storage tanks, 1<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">st<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> party business interruption (lost revenues incurred by the named insured should a pollution event cause their operations to be suspended).\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PPL policies can be written to address both unknown preexisting conditions, and new conditions. However, to cover unknown pre-existing conditions, insured\u2019s must provide copies of a recently performed environmental site assessment report for the scheduled property(s).\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PPL policies can be written with term lengths of 1-year to 5-years, and multiple properties can be scheduled on a single policy, providing a per location premium saving when compared to individual locations on separate policies.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Transportation Pollution Liability (TPL)<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Generally, Business Auto or Truckers policies will exclude pollution losses arising from spills or other releases of their cargo. Broadened auto pollution liability (typically Form CA 9948) affords coverage during the loading, unloading and transportation, for a spill, release or sudden upset and over turn of transported cargo. \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Note<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">:<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You have potential indirect environmental exposures from the vendors you hire and products you purchase.\u00a0 Should one of your vendors cause or exacerbate an environmental condition during the loading, unloading, and transporting of your product, your ownership of that product creates liability. It is important to require your trucking contractors to carry Transportation Pollution Liability.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Contractors Pollution Liability (CPL)<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CPL coverage protects you from liability for pollution conditions you cause or exacerbate while performing work away from your scheduled properties, whether being performed by you, or on your behalf by a 3<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">rd<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> party. For recyclers, CPL would cover work you perform in the field, such as breaking down materials at a customer\u2019s \/ supplier\u2019s location prior to shipment to your processing facility.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Property Transfer Coverage<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When buying or selling property there can be unknown preexisting environmental conditions. Since a Phase I, Phase II, All Appropriate Inquiry (AAI) survey cannot guarantee uncovering all potential environmental liabilities, insurance companies have created property transfer insurance. This coverage protects the new owner or any party with an insurable interest, against unknown environmental conditions that may be discovered during the policy period, that were not caused by the new owner. This coverage not only helps to keep the property at its maximum value, it will assist the purchaser in being able to secure the necessary financing to complete their transaction.\u00a0 Property buyers have negotiated lower interest rates by blending property transfer coverage with their mortgage.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Environmental exposures include PFAS Chemicals;\u00a0 Storm water runoff;\u00a0 Asbestos or lead containing materials;\u00a0 Pollution events as a result of a fire;\u00a0Metals with radioactive contamination and more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[45,225,107],"class_list":["post-2829","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-risk","tag-metals","tag-plastics","tag-recycling","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/estrategist.com\/members\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2829","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/estrategist.com\/members\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/estrategist.com\/members\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/estrategist.com\/members\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/estrategist.com\/members\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2829"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/estrategist.com\/members\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2829\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2830,"href":"https:\/\/estrategist.com\/members\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2829\/revisions\/2830"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/estrategist.com\/members\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2829"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/estrategist.com\/members\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2829"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/estrategist.com\/members\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2829"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}