The construction recession is killing off numerous smaller companies and surety losses are growing, said insurers at the International Risk Management Institute's construction conference in San Diego, which ended Nov. 17. But bigger, better-managed companies continue to win jobs, so surety losses overall will be manageable.
At the same time, risk managers, brokers and insurers in attendance at the IRMI event said the never-ending legal wrangling over scope of coverage has led lawmakers in four states to attempt to assure that construction defects are covered under contractor liability insurance. As a result, they added, a few insurers reportedly are steering clear of writing liability coverage for contractors in those states.