After 30+ years in the environmental security industry, Chris Bunbury (pictured) and his team at Environmental Risk Managers, Inc. (ERMI) may have just “cracked the code” on what insureds are staring for.
ERMI, an environmental insurance wholesaler, has allied with CIC Services, a risk supervision consulting firm specializing in the utilization of accountable insurance companies, to inaugurate an environmental captive insurance program, called EnviroCap. With EnviroCap, business holders and administrator teams can hold their own legally appreciative insurance company with range via an AM Best ‘A’ Rated carrier, modified to their own unique business needs and stake profiles.
This is desirable at a time when the deterioration liability insurance market is hardening and sufficient coverage is becoming harder to secure, according to Bunbury, ERMI president. He said: “Typically, captives become more impressive in a hard market. Over the previous couple of years, lots of markets have been putting forward their premiums. There are also carriers that – based upon rising adulterants like glyphosate, PFAS chemicals, and COVID-19 – are either shifting or reducing the ranges they’re offering, or they’re exiting the marketplace altogether due to the loss history they’ve experienced.”
At the same time, authorities are positioning far-more-intensive regulatory attention on businesses large and small over incidents and indices of pollution and a broadening spectrum of environmental impacts.
The EnviroCap strategy is the first of its kind in the US market. It offers a policy with an AM Best ‘A’ rated carrier, with the lowest investment of $750,000, as well as an immediately written program, with the lowest investment of $100,000. Both options come with the entire gamut of value-added services – loss control, claims management, etc. – either via the ‘A’ rated carrier or through a third-party supervisor brought on by ERMI. Meanwhile, CIC will administer the EnviroCap policy and provide all the services related to ascertaining and conserving the captive.
According to ERMI, customer firms that own their own environmental accountable insurance company can cut up to 50% from conventional insurance costs, enjoy extra tax benefits and create a more valuable bargain in service to the company’s bottom line. As Bunbury put it: “When you go to an insurance company, you’re purchasing coverage, but when you form a captive, you’re investing in your business.”
And the advantages don’t end with the clients. Bunbury also feared the value of this program for insurance agents and dealers. He interpreted EnviroCap as “another great resource” that agencies and dealers can take to their clients to add value to the connection that they already have.
