Category Archives: Property/Casualty

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The Planet’s Plastic Garbage Problem

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A giant island composed of plastic waste thrice the size of France is floating in the Pacific Ocean. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) contains 1.

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8 trillion pieces of plastic weighing 80,000 metric tons. It is located between Hawaii and California, which has the distinction of being the world’s largest accumulation zone for ocean plastics because it just happens to be where multiple sea currents meet and where the (mostly) plastic mass churns.

The GPGP was on Risk Management Monitor’s radar back in 2014 (and prior to that, as well) and even then, it was already considered one of the costliest man-made disasters in history. But new developments from the Ocean Cleanup Foundation (OCF) confirmed that the buoyant junk heap exceeds earlier projections of its size and scope. According to the OCF, the newly released estimates are four to 16 times higher than previously expected for the GPGP’s overall size. 92% of the mass is represented by larger objects; while only 8% of the mass is contained in microplastics, defined as pieces smaller than a quarter-inch in size.

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“We were surprised by the amount of large plastic objects we encountered,” said Dr. Julia Reisser, chief scientist of the expeditions. “We used to think most of the debris consists of small fragments, but this new analysis shines a new light on the scope of the debris.”

The OCF has removal plans in motion and scientists said this situation also highlights the need for stronger recycling efforts.

Boyan Slat, founder of the OCF and co-author of the study, elaborated on the relevance of the findings for his organization’s cleanup plans: “To be able to solve a problem, we believe it is essential to first understand it. These results provide us with key data to develop and test our cleanup technology, but it also underlines the urgency of dealing with the plastic pollution problem. Since the results indicate that the amount of hazardous microplastics is set to increase more than tenfold if left to fragment, the time to start is now.”

OCF, which is privately funded, plans to remove the plastic heap using an autonomous floating system (composed of high-density polyethylene, a durable and recyclable material) designed to capture small plastic particles less than a half-inch and as large as tens of yards wide. Cleanup is expected to begin in the next six months and OCF models indicate that half of the GPGP can be removed by 2023. According to its website:

By removing the plastic while most of it is still large, we prevent it from breaking down into dangerous microplastics. Combining the cleanup with source reduction on land paves the road towards a plastic-free ocean in 2050.

Unfortunately, such a huge environmental risk is not limited to the Pacific.

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Last month, a study released in Frontiers in Marine Science found lots of microplastics in the fish and marine life of the North Atlantic Ocean:

Using forensic methods, this study assessed microplastic frequency of occurrence in mesopelagic fish gut contents from a warm-core eddy in the Northwest Atlantic. We detected a significantly higher occurrence rate of 73% in contrast to previous studies reporting occurrence rates of 11% in the North Atlantic and 9% and 35% in the North Pacific Gyre regions.

In a recent USA Today article, one Frontiers study author reminded that just because these fish may be out of our physical reach, our waste knows no bounds.

“These seemingly remote fishes located thousands of kilometers (miles) from land and 600 meters (2,000 feet) down in our ocean are not isolated from our pollution,” said study co-author Tom Doyle, a marine biologist at the National University of Ireland in Galway.

5 Tips for Choosing the Right TPA

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While many risk managers have had excellent experience with their third party administrators (TPAs), others have been disappointed. Unfortunately, when the match isn’t right, the risk manager may be left with poor claim outcomes, higher claims and insurance costs, and difficulty identifying issues and making corrections.

The key to successful relationships often hinges on the risk manager’s ability to set  priorities and evaluate prospective TPAs and other claim service providers accordingly, based on objective, outcome-based metrics. Here are five tips for choosing TPA and claim service providers that are best suited to meet your needs:

  1. Look beyond household names. Too often, risk managers narrow their options based on name recognition.
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    While this might appear to be a safe choice, it may not yield the best fit. And that can lead to higher costs, poor outcomes, and ineffective relationships. Even with name-brand providers, mismatches might exist between the risk professional’s priorities and the service provider’s capabilities and operating cultures of the two organizations, available industry expertise, and resources such as risk management information systems.

  2. Articulate your needs and priorities. An effective relationship starts with knowing the specific requirements of your enterprise and setting relevant priorities. Are you in an industry with unique risks? Do you have a backlog of complex and legacy claims? Is your geographic footprint local, regional or national? Do you have significant operations in states with challenging regulatory frameworks? Do you need a provider with a strong reputation for closing difficult claims or managing litigation? How valuable are the TPA’s data management resources or risk management information system to your program? What’s your claims volume? Conduct a careful assessment of your needs, establish priorities, and create a request for proposal and related scorecard for evaluating candidates.
  3. Check how closely the TPA’s capabilities and resources match your needs. Areas you might examine include: staffing and account management, geographic locations, adjuster case load, pricing structure, reserving practices, quality assurance and training, MMSEA (Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007) reporting, litigation and subrogation management, managed care, data handling and reporting capabilities, and transition planning.
  4. As practical, insist on outcome-based metrics and use them to compare candidates. When you break it down, the fees charged by claim service providers represent only a small percentage of claim costs. Whenever possible, try to obtain metrics on actual claim outcomes rather than process. Analyze time and cost of various types of claim closures and percentages over time that might apply to your organization, check average claim duration and costs, and examine these results by state, your industry sector and other relevant breakouts.
  5. Know which adjusters will be assigned to your program. They’re the gatekeepers who will make a big difference in your results. So, be sure you know who the adjusters will be on your account. If your largest claims typically demand experienced adjusters with proven track records make sure that’s what you’ll be getting. Find out about their adjuster turnover rates. While some attrition might be expected, you want to avoid situations where you’re constantly re-educating adjusters to get up to speed—especially on complex and legacy claims. Try to ascertain whether their adjusters fit your culture, claims handling approach and priorities.
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Once you make your TPA selection, evaluate their performance on a regular basis. Track the TPA’s results against what you anticipated based on the metrics they provided in response to your request for proposal (RFP).

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By adhering to an objective selection process, including making sure the TPA’s team and capabilities are aligned with your priorities, you’ll be in the best position to get the results you want.

Prepare Now for Ransomware

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In 2017, a company was hit with ransomware every 40 seconds. Organizations in all industry sectors were subject to ransomware attacks, as these attacks often opportunistically take advantage of security shortcomings. The average ransom demand was more than $1,000.00—greater than three times the average in 2015. What’s more, one in five business that paid ransom never got its data back.

So, how do you protect your business? First, make sure you are insured. While traditional policies provide little, if any, coverage for damage to electronic data—and none for other costs associated with cyber extortion—they are covered by cyber extortion insurance. This is available under many cyber liability policies. Cyber extortion provisions typically cover ransom payments and extortion-related expenses such as costs incurred in negotiating the ransom and restoring or replacing data or software.

But insurance is just one aspect of the protection your business should have. Companies also need to prepare an Incident Response Plan (IRP), that establishes responses to ransomware attacks. An IRP should be a “living, breathing” document that is consistently updated to ensure that its information and procedures are accurate and up-to-date. Typical topics addressed by an IRP are:

  • The Incident Response Team. The IRP must identify the team in charge of responding to ransomware attacks. This team should include an executive and inside counsel, and should provide back-ups in case first-line members cannot be reached. The IRP should contain 24-7 contact information for all team members, including means of contact that do not rely on the business-provided phones or email that may be affected by the attack.

Additionally, the IRP should identify team members’ specific responsibilities, such as implementing security measures, investigating the attack, communicating with the extortionists, communicating with customers or the public, and notifying insurance carriers and law enforcement.

  • Detecting an Incident. The IRP should identify steps for employees to take if they suspect or detect a ransomware attack.
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  • Approved Vendors. As you will likely need outside assistance to respond to an attack, your IRP should identify approved vendors such as outside coverage counsel, investigative and cybersecurity firms, and a PR firm to assist with external communications.
  • Reporting to Law Enforcement. The IRP should define when and how ransomware attacks must be reported to which law enforcement agencies. It should also address what evidence should be collected and preserved, and how.  Ideally, these issues should be discussed with the relevant agencies ahead of time, which also helps build a cooperative relationship with them.
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  • Notifying Insurance Carriers. The IRP should identify all insurance policies that could provide coverage for a ransomware attack and detail steps to comply with each policy’s notification requirements.
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    Outside coverage counsel can assist with both identifying relevant policies and provisions, and following notification requirements.

  • Responding to Extortionists. The IRP must identify who communicates with the extortionists and who decides whether and how to respond to their demands. This should include steps for how to make potentially required electronic currency payments.
  • Investigating the Incident. The IRP should define who is responsible for investigating a ransomware attack and include a checklist detailing specific response steps. It should also establish procedures to increase the chances of identifying the extortionists, and to detect and address security vulnerabilities.
  • Documenting the Response. The IRP should set forth steps to document both your response to and your investigation of the attack, including contacts with the extortionists, the decision-making process resulting in a response, and the technical response and investigation, including the preservation of evidence. Such documentation may be required by regulatory agencies or insurers.
  • Public Relations. To facilitate communications about the attack with customers or the public, the IRP should assign responsibility for doing so and define steps for preparing and releasing such communications.
  • User Training. End-user training of all employees, including management, is key to preventing ransomware attacks. The IRP needs to contain procedures to ensure that all employees receive such training periodically, as common threats change over time.

Appropriate insurance coverage; an IRP that is consistently updated, including through “post mortem” evaluations following attacks; and up-to-date systems security are critical to prepare your business for—and to the extent possible, protect it from—potential ransomware attacks.

Workplace Sexual Harassment: More HR Guidance Needed

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From news anchors, to titans of the entertainment industry, to corporate executives, and elected officials, headlines show no one is above the fallout of sexual harassment in the workplace. Millions of dollars have been paid in settlements and the once mighty have fallen in disgrace.

Yet, a belated resignation or termination doesn’t absolve the employer from legal action—and often leaves the aggrieved and/or juries wondering how the employer might have handled the situation better.

How can risk managers, human resources (HR), executives and companies they serve help prevent sexual or other forms of harassment? The question becomes more pressing now with the “Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Harassment” bill. The proposed legislation voids forced arbitration and allows disputes to proceed in court rather than in a confidential arbitration setting. Proponents believe the prospect of making these cases public will reduce such activity in the workplace.

Smart employers aren’t waiting on legislation to make workplaces safer, however. They are planning and training now to reduce sexual harassment to mitigate risk, and therefore, potential damage claims affecting executives and employees across employer ranks. Ensuring such a workplace should result in fewer acts and reports of harassment and insurance claims. As all employers are interested in the bottom line as well as a positive work environment, a more defensible posture against future claims should be top-of-mind for every risk manager and HR Executive.

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Old policies prohibiting harassment must be dusted off, reviewed, updated and publicized. These policies protect those whose accusations are proven to have merit or are brought in good faith, they create consequences for those proven to have abused others, and should clearly define expectations and ramifications.

These strategies can help risk managers, HR teams, and employers keep their organizations out of the headlines:

  • Review internal policies and procedures. When was the last time your organization reviewed the HR policies and procedures manual? Older manuals may ineffectively address the issue, including under the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) guidance.
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    Once updated, make the document available to the workforce in print and online. However, a manual of policies is only the beginning.

  • Training is not a one-time event for select individuals. To paraphrase Aristotle, inclusion training in the workplace is not an act, but a habit. Hire a professional skilled in workplace diversity and inclusion training, and make courses mandatory from the rank and file to the C-suite. Refresh the training every few years, and make sure every new hire is trained as part of onboarding.
  • Create a “See something, say something” culture. Sexual harassment is avoided best in organizations with a culture of transparency and accountability. Management must welcome reports of unwanted sexual advances, and then investigate such claims. Such activity reported but not acted upon can worsen the environment, and become powerful evidence for claimants in harassment lawsuits.
  • Establish a realistic reporting procedure. If protocol urges an aggrieved employee to report harassment to a direct supervisor—and that supervisor is the alleged perpetrator—an obvious conflict arises. Encourage employees to speak directly to HR or a high level manager such as a division, general or plant manager. The reporting procedure should ensure that certain steps are taken so complaints are not swept aside.
  • Empower HR to investigate all claims. If HR receives a complaint, it has a legal obligation to investigate further. Even if the complainant fears an investigation could jeopardize the alleged harasser’s job, the law is clear that a prompt investigation occur to stop any alleged harassment from continuing. Termination or disciplinary action are not necessarily required; often, claimants just want the behavior to stop. It could be immature or otherwise benign playfulness that crossed the line—behavior a simple discussion could remedy.
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    Follow up with the complainant to ensure the behavior has stopped and to document that follow-up occurred.

Effective policies and procedures in place and rigorously followed can help employees know the organization takes sexual, racial, and other forms of harassment seriously; insurers know you’ve established policies designed to protect both employees and the organization against incidents of harassment; and for those who might see million-dollar claims in the news and think they could be next, that you’ve set up your defenses.