Products and Completed Operations - Recent Headline Case Provides Proof Why This Coverage Is Vital

For many of today's vast and growing industries, significant liability exposures can arise from their products and completed operations compared to their premises and on site operations. Product liability arises when a company can be held responsible for bodily injury or property damage caused by the products they sell, manufacture and or distribute. Completed operations liability results when the company can be held liable for property damage or bodily injury caused by work performed such as service and repairs.

Products and completed operations are often combined together within the insurance policy because they both address the fact that a problem has occurred once control has been relinquished and the product has left the insured's premises. Product liability insurance has quickly become one of the most important coverage's that can be obtained today. Constant headlines of defective or tampered products, large judgements and increased litigation has led to demand for safer products across all industries. The treat of mass litigation, and increased insurance costs has encouraged businesses to increase internal safety testing measures while producing safer products for the consumer.

Over the recent Christmas holidays, a large national retailer was in the news for pulling a baby formula from all of their 3000 nationwide outlets. The formula had been linked to an infant death and the chain decided to pull the formula as a precautionary measure until full facts regarding the case were made available. A move like this can cost the manufacturer millions of dollars from lost revenues, product recall, investigating the cause, litigation and potential damages awarded to plaintiff(s). Back in the early 1980's, six people were killed in Chicago after taking capsules that were found to be laced with Cyanide. The investigation later revealed that the deaths were not due to manufacturing but tampering of the product after reaching the stores. The manufacturer who at the time was unsure if this was a nationwide crisis quickly pulled all of their capsules across the country. This product recall cost them in excess of $100 million.

Most standard Commercial General Liability (CGL) policies provide coverage for Products-Completed operations. A general definition of this coverage is defined as:

The Aggregate Limit is the most the Insurer will pay under Coverage A for the sum of all damages arising out of the "Products and Completed operations hazard" in any one period of twelve months terminating on an anniversary of the inception date of the policy.

It is very important to take note that while most policies will cover property damage and bodily injury resulting from the products or completed operations, these same policies EXCLUDE coverage for the cost of the product recall. Product recall insurance can be purchased from a speciality carrier who will cover all the expenses incurred by a company that is forced to recall their product for any circumstance. Companies involved in pharmaceuticals, food/beverage, and toys have a much higher propensity for product recalls therefore making product recall insurance a vital cost of doing business.

Just as businesses are taking great care in manufacturing quality and safe products, insurance companies take similar precautions when assessing a potential risk for Products & Completed Operations. A prudent insurance underwriter will look at a number of key pieces of information before making a decision. The following is a brief list of checkpoints I used when analyzing large product manufacturing operations.

Potential Hazard of the product - what is the worst possible scenario if the product fails? A manufacturer of plastic bowls has much less risk compared to a manufacturer of lighters.



Packaging - Does the packaging properly protect the product from being damaged while in transit and is the packaging itself safe with proper warnings in place.



Product Manuals - are manuals thorough with illustrations and provide details in how the product is to be used safely with information on how to instructions and all possible warnings.



Internal Quality Control - has the manufacturer established an adequate program in place to monitor testing, design, inspection, safety measures.



Customer Complaints - a detailed procedure should be in place to include the following: A record of all complaints- date/time/outcome A record of each product that caused the complaint- make/model A detailed record of all lawsuits and claims A record of final responses and or actions taken to eliminate similar future cases Copies of notices/reports sent to press, associations, authorities



Detailed records - itemized list of all suppliers, distributors, manufacturers involved in the design, creation and distribution. Invoices should contain full information on quantity, batch numbers sent to distributors, outlets to assist in tracing the products history.

All the above channels of distribution play an integral role in reducing and or eliminating a mass product recall. Without them, a recall can become very difficult and costly. In a case where the manufacturer is unaware which product is faulty, then the entire line of products may have to be recalled causing additional time to locate the problem with the potential of more injuries/damages to occur until the problem has been identified.

A few years ago, a woman and her legal team successfully sued a retail chain for damages caused by a hair dryer she purchased at their store. The hair dryer caught fire and ended up burning the woman. The case alleged that the retailer sold an unsafe product failing to warn purchasers of any inherent dangers. She was awarded $186,000. It is certain that retailer would have tried to recover their losses by suing the manufacturer of the product in addition to pulling the product off their shelves in all locations.

Product liability concerns can vary drastically with each type of product. Previous losses within the company or in the industry are the best indicators of potentially large future claims. This is why insurance companies can spend weeks or longer evaluating large complex and dangerous risks. They invest considerable resources such as hiring firms to review financial statements & on site inspectors to be made aware of all factors before quoting and eventually insuring a risk. Companies requiring this coverage should seek out a broker that can offer multiple quotes from different carriers to compare pricing, wordings, restrictions. If one pricing seems too low compared to others, make it a point to ask how much experience the company has in the specific class of insurance. If they are relatively new than with little or no experience handling a large claim, then it may be best to seek out another carrier with proven experience in the industry.

Wholesale Imports Are Vital to a Functioning World Economy

What are wholesale imports?

To state it simply, wholesale imports are the goods that one region purchases from another region. These commodities will probably be such things as textiles, cloths, fresh foods, raw supplies and produced materials. And now in such a technological era we are also importing service. These wholesale imports are dispatched wherever there is requirement for the item or service. There may already be competing solutions in that market, or the merchandise might be new to the marketplace.

These items are then transported, typically by a commercial freight forwarder, both by plane or sea vessels across worldwide borders. Here they need to go through customs inspections by a customs officer at the internal harbor, airport, or railway station ports of entry.

At customs, the importer is instructed to present the correct documentation such as insurances, permits, a record of the objects you're bringing in, a notice of credit, a bill of lading, payment of any charges, taxes, duties and expenses.

All nations, are required to conduct their business in acquiescence with international guidelines and legislation. They have to respect all embargoes, limitations, allocations, quarantine laws, and any other situations that might make the movement of imports impossible.

And so, since we have reviewed specifically what wholesale imports are, let's determine whether or not wholesale imports are a very good thing or a bad issue for the local economic climate of an indigenous society.

It truly all comes down to the matter of production and desire, as well as the ability of a specific nation to produce the items that are sought by the population. If a specific products just isn't readily available since the domestic inhabitants both does not have the assets or the effort to produce it, and there may be sufficient desire for it, then it is sensible to purchase wholesale imports in order to meet that desire.

Also it might not seem sensible to obtain wholesale imports if competing variations of the exact same item are already obtainable in your nation or there isn't sufficient demand for that certain product or service.

Whenever you do your market analysis, you must determine if it's cost prohibitive to import those types of items. After all, the goal of the import company is to generate income. Unless imported goods satisfy a need of the indigenous population, it doesn't add up, nor is it financially feasible to bring these kinds of wholesale imports directly into that nation. If they cannot make money for all individuals involved in the exchange, from purchasers to sellers and for everyone else in the middle, then the process is futile.

In this modern era of global trading, wholesale imports are a crucial part of what has allowed the international financial system to grow. It has also permitted other countries around the globe to reap some benefits and enjoy the advancements in manufacturing systems plus every thing that has been produced mainly because of this advancement.

So, it is likely that you're looking for much more help and advice relevant to Wholesale Imports or you'd like to learn the ins and outs of running an imports and exports small business then go to http://www.importexporthomestudy.com and receive your free of charge report.

Smart Meters Have a Vital Role in Smart Power Grids

Gas and electricity providers are gradually replacing the standard energy meters with smart meters, which are more accurately able to a customer's energy usage. They feature a wireless electronic display which gives full details of all energy consumption, along with the associated cost - both in financial and carbon terms - and makes this available to consumer and provider alike.

Smart meters have the potential to transform the way in which UK households and businesses administer their energy needs. They have received a recent boost from the announcement by energy regulator Ofgem that it plans to invest £500 million in creating up to four 'smart grid cities' across Britain.

Ofgem has asked energy providers to come up with possible locations for new municipal smart grids and the regulator will then pay for smart meters to be installed in all the households in that area. The pilot scheme will see these locations being used as a proving ground for the smart technology ahead of a national roll-out.

The regulator is convinced that Britain's ageing power grid is in need of an overhaul and wishes the smart grid cities to signal the start of this process. It has said that alongside the increasing use of digital technology to revolutionise how energy is distributed and consumed, an ever-increasing share of the UK's power requirements must be met through renewable energy sources.

However, if renewable power sources are to achieve their full potential, Ofgem argues that the UK energy network needs to transform itself from a centralised grid to one with a widely distributed range of sources. The current national grid is configured for large power stations burning fossil fuels, rather than the more intermittent supply generated from renewable sources.

With the new smart grid cities, power for these areas will be produced locally and the smart grid technology will assess and distribute the irregular levels of power generated by renewable sources, such as wind farms. At the points of use - in homes and businesses - smart meters will monitor power usage and calculate the cost for consumers.

There is even an opportunity for environmentally-minded householders to take a more active role in their electricity generation and consumption. By installing solar panels or wind turbines on their properties, these home or business owners can contribute to their own energy needs and even supply excess energy back to the local grid to make a saving on their bills. Again, smart meters have an important role to play in this, by monitoring the levels of home-produced energy and keeping the electricity provider informed.

Kim has done alot of research into price comparisons for customers and how to get the best deal on many household products including Gas and Electricity. She enjoys writing articles to share this knowledge.