Why General Liability Does Not Respond

The general liability pollution exclusion is broad, and it specifically reaches the work tank contractors do. It excludes bodily injury and property damage arising out of the discharge, dispersal, seepage, migration, release, or escape of pollutants at or from any premises on which any insured is performing operations, if the pollutants are brought on the site in connection with those operations. It also excludes releases in the course of transporting waste and at waste handling or disposal sites.\n\nPetroleum products are pollutants under that definition. Contaminated soil is waste being transported. The exclusion was written with exactly this work in mind.\n\nContractors pollution liability is the coverage built for it. It covers third party bodily injury, property damage, and cleanup costs arising from a pollution condition caused by the contractor\'s operations. It is generally available on either an occurrence or a claims made basis, and the difference matters: with a claims made form, closure reports filed years ago create exposure that only responds if coverage has been maintained continuously and the retroactive date reaches back far enough.\n\nProfessional liability is the second coverage, and it is the one contractors most often skip. If your firm or your employees are making judgments about whether a site is clean, designing a remediation approach, or signing closure documentation, that is professional service, and claims alleging a faulty conclusion are professional liability claims, not pollution claims. Many firms carry a combined contractors pollution and professional liability form for this reason.

• The general liability pollution exclusion specifically covers operations pollution and waste transport
• Contractors pollution liability covers third party claims and cleanup from your operations
• Occurrence versus claims made matters enormously because closure work has a long tail
• Professional liability is needed wherever your firm makes judgments or signs documentation
• A combined pollution and professional form is common for this work

The Coverage Details to Confirm Before Binding

Within a contractors pollution policy, several provisions decide whether a real claim is paid.\n\nPre existing conditions. Many policies exclude pollution conditions that existed before the policy inception or before your operations began. For tank work, where discovering old contamination is routine, how the policy handles this is the central question. Some forms cover your liability for exacerbating a pre existing condition; others exclude pre existing conditions entirely.\n\nNon owned disposal site coverage. Your contaminated soil goes to a facility you do not own. If that facility is later the subject of a cleanup action, generators can be pursued. Non owned disposal site coverage addresses that exposure, and it typically requires that the facility be properly permitted.\n\nTransportation coverage. Pollution arising in transit needs to be specifically covered, since general liability excludes it and auto forms address it narrowly.\n\nCompleted operations. The claim arrives after you leave. Confirm that completed operations are covered and for how long, and understand how the retroactive date and any extended reporting period work.

• Determine exactly how pre existing pollution conditions are treated
• Confirm non owned disposal site coverage and that your facilities are properly permitted
• Confirm transportation pollution coverage
• Verify completed operations coverage, the retroactive date, and extended reporting options
• Check mold and legionella treatment if your work could encounter them
• Compare owner indemnity requirements against the insured contract definition

Review Your Environmental Program

If you do tank work, the questions worth answering today are how your policy treats pre existing conditions, whether completed operations and non owned disposal sites are covered, and whether your professional exposure is insured. We place pollution and professional liability for environmental and remediation contractors. Schedule a conversation at calendly.com/grandbayfinancial.\n\nThis article is for general information and is not a substitute for policy language or professional advice.