Environmental claims are increasing in terms of both frequency and magnitude of loss, and this trend looks set to continue, according to insurers surveyed in the latest Willis Index for Environmental
Respondents to the Index for the second quarter of 2006 indicated that the pace of claims seen recently is higher than in previous years, due to rapidly changing environmental legislation and the increasing public awareness of environmental issues.
Insurers report that the vast majority of recent claims have been successful, perhaps largely due to the specialist nature of the cover. Where claims did not succeed, this was typically a result of the (often innocent) non-disclosure of 'known' contamination issues prior to binding the policy.
Increased competition throughout the environmental insurance industry, may have had a hand in driving premiums down recently.
