Michael Perron

PFAS continues to create challenges in today's liability insurance market; Marsh is here to create effective solutions. Below is a case study that highlights a bespoke solution crafted by the Marsh Environmental Practice. Matthew Kern Kimberly Mann

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PFAS – the forever chemicals – are here to stay following April 2024 federal regulations imposed under CERCLA and the Safe Drinking Water Act.  Building resiliency for your organization starts with understanding your risk and planning around mitigation strategies.  Learn more in this article authored by my colleague Matthew Kern. Reach out to the Marsh Environmental Practice to learn more. https://lnkd.in/gkGurEf5

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A company named in a PFAS contamination claim needed help identifying applicable liability coverage. A daunting task, the review of current and legacy coverage spanned more than 50 years of insurance policies. Learn what Marsh's team of complex liability consultants did to identify potentially applicable coverage that would address losses, and what they continue to do post award to ensure claims are paid. This becomes all the more important in light of US EPA putting PFAS regulations in place. #marsh #PFAS

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Do you know the 3 components required for a #wildfire? Zurich North America's new overview on wildfires is a helpful primer on a rising risk for businesses. https://lnkd.in/gvJX53Ya

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A consistent conversation we are having is around PFAS; see the attached to get more information on this risk and how your company may be impacted. Don’t assume, get informed!

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As a #design firm, are you exposed to #climate liability for failing to adapt your projects to future climate conditions? Listen in on Victor's recent webinar to learn more. https://lnkd.in/eDCR6qaV

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Our updated US #Wildfire model comes at a needful time. The market at large is looking for social awareness of the true & immediate hazard for property owners. #insurers & #reinsurers demand a stable and coherent view of the fair technical price of #catastrophe risk. To meet demand our updated model features . enhancements to the fire spread model, especially in the wildland-urban interface . insurance loss modeling of smoke damage outside of the wildfire perimeter, basic principles, https://lnkd.in/ePkR9B8j . the incorporation of data from recent fire seasons, including fuel information supplemented with insights from Fireline® . accounting for coverage and spatial dependencies in all accumulations, see https://lnkd.in/eBvWg7QM https://lnkd.in/eVwzckVj #californiainsurance, #extremevents, #riskmanagement, #actuarialscience

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Thanks for sharing. Many #pfas issues will and are transferring across the pond to Europe, Asia and Australasia Creating headaches for brokers seeking coverage and for insurers seeking to limit or restrict their exposure unless priced for this. #environmentalinsurance This is why claims departments need to access #globalexpertise for these issues.

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BMS Group Tropical Update 11/13/2024  The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, which officially ends on November 30th, has been an exceptionally active and intense one. Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE) has surpassed the hyperactive threshold, reaching 159.77 as of mid-November. Hurricane Rafael added to the season’s energy, though it dissipated in the Gulf of Mexico. Now, the development of another storm, potentially named Sara, is expected to occur in the western Caribbean, fueled by warmer-than-average sea surface temperatures, a weak La Niña pattern, and favorable trade winds. This late-season storm could present further challenges for the insurance industry, as similar conditions earlier in the season have already resulted in a notable rise in hurricane days and major hurricane metrics, following storms like Rafael, Milton, and Helene. As the season draws to a close, complex weather patterns over North America are likely to affect potential named Sara’s path. With high pressure across the Central Plains and a deepening low-pressure trough over the western U.S., Sara may follow a trajectory that draws it near Central America or the Yucatan Peninsula before moving toward the Gulf of Mexico or Florida, with possible intensification. This evolving situation also coincides with other notable weather developments in the U.S., including a forecasted blizzard in the Midwest with severe weather to the south and heightened wildfire risks along the East Coast due to drought conditions and strong winds. Given these factors, the insurance industry may need to prepare for late season impacts and potential losses from one last bit of tropical trouble and other extreme weather events. Above are various forecasts from the ECMWF deterministic of geopotential height at 500 mb, about half the atmosphere. Thus, they depict well the major weather features at play in Sara's forecast. For a lot more detail on the potential forecast and other factors to consider over the next week, please click the following link: ⬇️ https://lnkd.in/gXmA89PK #TropicalUpdate #HurricaneSeason #Insurance #Reinsurance

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On April 19, 2024, the EPA announced the formal designation of two PFAS chemicals (PFOA and PFOS) as hazardous substances under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). These regulations are expected to trigger requirements for environmental investigations at sites where these two chemicals are known or suspected to have been used and to clean up any that are detected. This could include formerly contaminated sites that were remediated and contaminated sites that are currently undergoing cleanup. Learn more in this article authored by my colleague @Matthew Kern https://lnkd.in/etpmfmXZ

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In the face of looming regulations and growing liability risks, companies are seeking help in managing waste containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as “forever chemicals.” #PFAS #Sustainability #Riskmanagement

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PFAS risks and new regulations are a pressing and relevant issue. The following article provides timely perspective and information.

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This is a good report with nice visual presentation of data from our colleagues at Gallagher Re. Putting the insured and economic loss together gives a strong perspective of the #insurance coverage gap. For readers outside of the industry & for #publicsector & political leaders it is a good data point of motivation in the continuous effort to reduce the gap. https://lnkd.in/eiMgu-ng

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2024 is off to an active start for severe convective storms (SCS) in the United States. SCS is an umbrella term for a range of hazards that stem from severe thunderstorms, including tornadic and straight-line winds, as well as large hailstones. I think the weekend outbreak in the middle of the country will almost certainly rank as the third (maybe the fourth or fifth) SCS event to cause over $1-Billion in total economic loss as ranked by NOAA's Billion Dollar Disasters. Severe Storms from March 13 - 15 of this year caused over $ 4b in losses due to severe storms that impacted many Central and Southern states. Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri were affected by up to baseball-sized hail damaging homes, vehicles, businesses. Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio were impacted by hail, high wind and dozens of tornadoes including a deadly EF-3 striking northwest Ohio. Storms in the first few days of 2024 caused nearly $2b in losses due to a southern tornado outbreak and East Coast storm that impacted more than a dozen states. At least 39 preliminary tornadoes were clustered around the Florida Panhandle through the Carolinas, while hundreds of high wind reports were scattered up the East Coast. The strongest tornado was an EF-3 that caused significant damage around Panama City Beach, Florida after an intense waterspout moved onshore. Adam Smith Our team here at Demex focuses on building financial resilience to SCS for insurers who back these losses. We are proud partners with Gallagher Re who estimate that the costliest peril for insurers in the first quarter of 2024 was SCS and early global estimates exceed $11b of insurance losses. Gallagher Re said this marked the second-most expensive first quarter for SCS claims after last year’s record-setting SCS losses of $15b in Q1. Steve Bowen Insurance is a critical mechanism in global economic resilience in the face of a changing climate and an economy of growing value in assets that lie in harm's way. There are times when insurance claims drive the economy by expediting financial recovery. Insurance payments benefit not only those directly affected by loss, but others as well. For example, claims payments end up at auto repair shops and home improvement retailers to fix cars, and rebuild homes. By supporting these businesses, economic growth is further stimulated. AMS Committee on Financial Weather/Climate Risk Management Payments to policyholders in 2023 alone and isolated to only the impact from SCS amounted to $ 70 billion in this country (according to our friends and partners at Aon). Daniel Hartung Insurance companies don't have to manage this risk alone. Our team here at Demex has already built nearly $65m in new financial coverage for insurers to become more resilient to SCS losses. This protection can prevent such losses should from driving credit downgrades, insolvencies, and market withdrawal. The Demex Group

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The PFAS regulation and litigation landscape continues to evolve. Here are three actions firms can take to minimize their risk. Marsh #Environmentalrisk #PFAS #Environmentalliability

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For the investors in my network: Quantifying these risks and to build them into your financial valuation models is becoming ever more important - we help with that!

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Discover the hidden dangers of PFAS, also known as "#ForeverChemicals," and their impact on health and businesses. #BusinessInsurance

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The German risk management association GVNW has criticized the insurance industry's blanket exclusions of PFAS (forever chemicals) from liability coverage, arguing that this approach is too broad and could harm German industry. The association calls for a more nuanced risk assessment and collaboration between insurers and clients, emphasizing that exclusions should be a last resort. They stress the need for ongoing dialogue to ensure that the risks related to specific PFAS compounds are thoroughly understood and managed. Read more👉 https://lnkd.in/gDMYY-GZ #RiskManagement #PFAS #Insurance #GVNW #LiabilityCoverage #IndustrialSafety

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I've posted a few articles about predictions for the 2024 hurricane season, including reposting a few excellent articles from Justin Roth, ARM, CEEM. In summary, this hurricane season could be a doozy. However, as noted in THIS article, higher levels of hurricane activity does not necessarily mean higher insured losses. Certainly in 2005 projections suggested higher activity and there were high levels of insured losses, but this is not always the case. 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒’𝑠 𝑎 𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑦 𝑤𝑒𝑎𝑘 𝑐𝑜𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑏𝑒𝑡𝑤𝑒𝑒𝑛 ℎ𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑒 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑠, 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑 𝐾𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑛 𝐶𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑘, 𝑓𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐶𝐸𝑂 𝑜𝑓 𝐵𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑛-𝑏𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑝ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑑𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑟 𝐾𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑛 𝐶𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑘 & 𝐶𝑜. “𝐻𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑙 𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑡𝑒. 𝑊ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑒𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑠𝑡 𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠? 𝐿𝑜𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛,” 𝑀𝑠. 𝐶𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑘 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑. 𝐼𝑛 2020, 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑒𝑥𝑎𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑟𝑒 11 𝑛𝑎𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑚𝑎𝑑𝑒 𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑓𝑎𝑙𝑙 – 𝑎 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑟𝑑 𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 – 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 ℎ𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑒𝑠 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑜𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 $20 𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑛𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 ℎ𝑖𝑡 ℎ𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑙𝑦 𝑝𝑜𝑝𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠, 𝑠ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑. “𝐼𝑡 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝐶𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑔𝑜𝑟𝑦 4 ℎ𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑓𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑛𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑀𝑖𝑎𝑚𝑖 𝑜𝑟 𝑛𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝐺𝑎𝑙𝑣𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑛/𝐻𝑜𝑢𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑛 𝑡𝑜 𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑎 $100 𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠,” 𝑠ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑. 𝐻𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑒 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑓𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑐𝑟𝑢𝑐𝑖𝑎𝑙 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑑𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑠, 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑘 𝐵𝑜𝑣𝑒, 𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑜𝑟𝑜𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑖𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑖𝑜𝑟 𝑣𝑖𝑐𝑒 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑁𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝐶𝑎𝑡𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑝ℎ𝑒 𝑆𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑀𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑅𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝐴𝑚𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑎 𝐼𝑛𝑐., 𝑏𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑛 𝑃𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑡𝑜𝑛, 𝑁𝑒𝑤 𝐽𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑦. “𝐻𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑒𝑠 𝑑𝑜𝑛’𝑡 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑢𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑙 ℎ𝑢𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑠 𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑤𝑎𝑦,” 𝑀𝑟. 𝐵𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑. OK, now my main point. What is missing from this article is the idea of resilience. Projects built to withstand weather events can withstand such events. The best example I recall was NextEra Energy, Inc.'s Babcock Ranch solar farm some 12 miles inland from where Hurricane Ian made landfall that was built to withstand high winds - and it emerged nearly unscathed. Check out this features following the Hurricane from 60 MINUTES https://lnkd.in/eJeiqdfE Building projects resiliently helps minimize property losses. This is where a company like FM Global can help too when these sites are being sited, designed, built, etc., to best assure these projects are around for their anticipated project life.

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