Environmental
Liability
Insurance

Because it covers injury or damage you’ve caused (or alleged to have caused). If you don’t have it, then you just pay the claim yourself, and if you can’t afford it, then that is your problem.

Since 2009 the law says that the polluter must pay, no excuses.

Ok… imagine a leaking pipe causing small spills over a long period of time.

That’s not sudden, so your Public Liability policy won’t operate, which means you’ll be liable for the clean-up costs on your own land, and any consequent damage to water courses or third party land.

What about historic pollution?

Imagine you discover your land is contaminated. Who pays to put it right? Well, it could be the previous owners, but if they can’t be located or don’t exist anymore, then the cost will fall on you. How would you pay for this if you didn’t have Environmental Liability insurance?

What happens if a fuel tank cracks due to old age, spills into a stream and the Local Authority get involved?

The law is very simple, since the new regulations came into effect on 1st March 2009, the polluter pays. So you’ll be responsible for all of the clean-up costs, and your normal property insurance or liability policies cannot operate because this type of loss is specifically excluded.

The only type of policy which can and does operate in any of the above scenarios is Environmental Liability Pollution insurance.

Yes. Public Liability covers sudden and immediate incidents NOT ones (such as a leaking pipe) which have been ongoing for days, weeks, months or years.

That type of incident is specifically excluded by a Public Liability policy, which is why you’d need Environmental Liability insurance.

The prudent answer is as much as you can afford.

Our minimum level of cover is now £1 million but most business buy £2, £5 or £10 million of cover.

There are so many factors which go into the premium calculation, for example, the nature of your business and what processes are undertaken on your premises, as well as if there are any watercourses nearby, for example.