The financially intimate relationship between contractors and insurers is more complicated this year, with contractors looking for relief from carriers on collateral or retained funds to cover deductibles for claims under workers’ compensation and liability policies.
Those issues were among the thornier ones mentioned by carriers, brokers and contractors at the International Risk Management Institute’s construction conference held Nov. 2-5 in Oxon Hill, Md. With ample capacity for builders risk, general liability and workers’ compensation and with pricing generally soft, no one was concerned about how much coverage was available. According to brokers and industry sources, special coverage can be bought, and contractors are purchasing excess lines at reasonable rates. For sureties, losses are increasing but not at an alarming rate.