Blog

Image credit: Dragon+Images/shutterstock.com

Accidents happen. Sometimes no matter how safe your company is, a claim can occur. It’s important that as an Owner/General Contractor your team knows what they need to do prior to any accident. Make sure you have clearly identified who will be responsible for completing the incident report if an accident were to occur (i.e. a Supervisor, etc.).

Image credit: andreygonchar/shutterstock.com

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused many companies to shift their work environments. As we enter 2021, many employees are still in a hybrid (office/work-from-home) setting or an entirely remote environment. As such, employers should be aware of new litigation regarding work-from-home and compensability under their state’s Workers’ Compensation (WC) statutes.

Image credit: adiruch/shutterstock.com

Small businesses in the United Kingdom (U.K.) celebrated a tremendous victory in the courts on Friday, January 15, 2021. The U.K. Supreme Court dismissed appeals by six insurers – Hiscox, RSA, QBE, Argenta, Arch and MS Amline – determining that “many thousands of policyholders will now have their claims for coronavirus-related (COVID-19) Business Interruption losses paid.”

Image credit: Drazen+Zigic/shutterstock.com

Wrap-Ups are a great risk management tool for large construction projects. There are many moving parts of a Wrap-Up program, which can seem overwhelming if you do not have the proper structure in place. The key elements of a Wrap-Up that create this structure include Program Design, Financial Risk, Administration, and Claims Management.

image credit: THICHA SATAPITANON/shutterstock.com

An unprecedented court ruling regarding business interruption insurance claims impacted by COVID-19 ‘across the pond’ has many insurers and insureds anxiously awaiting any ripple effects to be felt in the U.S.   

image credit: Chaay_Tee/shutterstock.com

Initially, courts dealt with a dearth of sophistication when determining the responsibility for the concurrent delay in the assessment of liquidated damages. Courts have now been permitting the assessment of liquidated damages, even where there are both Contractor and Owner-caused delays. Critical Path Method (CPM) scheduling software—aided by expert testimony—made a change in approach and willingness to use complex scheduling possible. Courts have tended to award liquidated damages with reasonable certainty when caused by the Contractor.

image credit: Nikola Barbutov/shutterstock.com

Despite the fact there is a set project schedule, we often find that construction projects are delayed and finish later than expected. As a result, Owners will often attempt to assess their liquidated damages against their Contractors for the delay at the end of the project. In doing so, Contractors typically claim that the delay was either Owner-Caused or a Concurrent Delay, which means the delay occurred due to acts of others beyond their control by multiple, independent parties.

image credit: bernatets photo/shutterstock.com

The construction industry has started picking up the pieces from COVID-19. Together, we have learned new lessons and developed new strategies for the future. Since this pandemic is unique, as disputes start to occur, we will start to see how the courts take precedent on COVID-19 cases. Here are 5 new construction scenarios to consider that could potentially lead to a claim.

image credit: Pormezz/shutterstock.com

Managing Worker’s Compensation (WC) claims for your employees can be complex and tricky. Here is a breakdown of the claims process to assist you in understanding what to expect when an injury is reported.

image credit: Blue Planet Studios/shutterstock.com

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have the most significant and widespread economic impact since World War II. Unfortunately, there are no benchmarks to compare what is happening or to accurately assess the overall medium and long-term impacts. As Owners and Contractors start picking up the pieces from this pandemic—and as we see projects that were halted, businesses that have been closed, and many other construction concerns—there are a few things to be mindful of: