The Problem: A laboratory at a university insured by XL Environmental experienced an unknown release of mercury. The mercury was discovered several years later, after the laboratory was no longer in use, and the building had been converted to offices. The university faced a costly cleanup, adverse publicity, and potential bodily injury claims from the building’s current occupants.

The Response: XL Environmental Claims promptly retained a qualified environmental consultant to investigate the contamination and ensure that mercury levels were low enough such that the current building occupants were not adversely effected. The university elected to demolish a portion of the building, and XL Environmental helped to retain a qualified contractor to ensure the appropriate and cost-effective disposal of contaminated material.

The property owner's Pollution and Remediation Legal Liability (PARLL) policy, with limits of $5 million, will respond to the costs of the remediation, which totaled $200,000.

The Benefit: XL Environmental Claims’ knowledge of the problem and experience with similar situations enabled it to effectively analyze and address the problem, which minimized the possibility of adverse publicity for the university. XL Environmental Claims’ oversight of the investigation and cleanup also dramatically reduced costs.