BusinessWire - The Deepwater Horizon oil spill may now be capped, but much of its impact on commercial insurers has yet to be felt, according to legal, environmental and insurance experts participating in an Advisen webinar on Friday, July 23. In addition to companies involved in the drilling project itself, all of which already have been sued, salvage firms, cleanup contractors and others involved in the cleanup process are exposed to lawsuits that likely will result in insurance claims. "BP is self-insured, but the other major players together have more than $2 billion in liability limits placed in the insurance market," said Dave Bradford, an Advisen Executive Vice President and one of the webinar panelists. "The insurance exposure, however, is much broader than that small group of companies. Already some of the companies involved in the salvage effort have been sued, and almost any company taking part in the cleanup process is a potential target. Not only are general liability and environmental liability policies exposed, but also directors and officers liability policies." Attorney Stuart Smith of Smith Stag LLC, another panelist, predicted suits will be brought under various environmental laws such as CERCLA, Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships, Clean Water Act, ...
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