While serious, headline-generating spills of potentially hazardous materials don't happen every day, America's huge commercial trucking fleet and the number of units on the road makes lesser spills an everyday occurrence. However, depending on local regulations, reporting requirements and cleanup parameters for even minor spills can be costly to customers if not handled with concern, urgency and a commitment to fix the problem to the satisfaction of state and local authorities.
If your customer portfolio includes trucking risks, you have clients with spill potential–even if they're hauling dry goods or non-hazardous materials. In one case, a customer experienced a spill of 8,000 gallons of wine–obviously not a hazardous material, but large enough to potentially pollute local surface waterways. Some local laws even require reporting and cleanup for spills from truck fuel or braking systems, often with the same rigor as more hazardous substances.
Clearly, the first line of defense is a properly trained operator. Trucking firms must ensure that all drivers are trained in the safe operation of their vehicles and in safety issues related to the materials they are hauling. However, no amount of training can prevent a loose piece of road debris from puncturing a diesel tank or a careless third party from colliding with the hauler's vehicle, causing an accident and resulting in a spill.
These recommendations can help your customers prepare for and respond to roadway spills and avoid serious fines and penalties:
o Develop a written contingency plan–The plan must lay out step by step what to do as soon as a driver reports a spill, from reporting the event to the authorities to arranging for cleanup contractors and resources.
o Train staff members on the plan–All of the customer's employees, from the officer level to the receptionist, should know a spill contingency plan is in place and what their roles are under that plan. Because anyone could get the initial call about a spill, there should be no ambiguities about what happens next.
o Test the plan–Customers should periodically test and update all contact information for regulators, emergency response resources and specific contractors with whom the customer has relationships.
o Identify resources in advance–The customer should try to identify all local contractors in the areas and along the routes where its vehicles are most likely to travel. The worst time to seek qualified local contractors is after an event has occurred, especially when regulators want cleanup to begin immediately.
o Coordinate with the contractor after a spill–Once a spill occurs and the customer has hired a qualified contractor, the customer should remain a full participant in the process, available at all times to participate in decisions that can affect ultimate costs and penalties.
o Ensure prompt regulatory notification–Because reporting requirements vary by jurisdiction, the response plan must include procedures to ensure prompt notification to all appropriate regulatory authorities. For instance, a small diesel fuel spill in New Jersey could constitute a reportable event, while in another state the threshold could be much higher. Timing also may be an issue. In Louisiana, failure to report a spill within one hour of the occurrence can have a significant impact on fines and penalties. Zurich's Web-based spill reporting tool provides customers with free access to the specific reporting requirements of the jurisdiction and what offices to contact.
o Maintain good communication–The customer should maintain good communication with the contractor, regulators and local authorities throughout the process. A willingness to be accessible, open and responsive about what happened and what's being done demonstrates that the company is committed to correcting the problem–which can have a substantial impact on fines and penalties.
o Conduct a post-event analysis–After the dust has settled, take stock of what went right, what could have gone better and how the response plan might need to be altered. What could have prevented the spill? Were the mitigation and cleanup costs in line with the severity of the event? Were authorities notified in a timely manner?
o Adjust the plan and retrain–Every time a response plan is reviewed and revised, the customer must retrain all employees on the details. Even if the response plan does not require a revision, it's a good idea to provide employees–from drivers to office staff – with periodic refreshers.
One other piece of advice is to make sure the customer gives the insurer the opportunity to become a proactive participant in the process. When regulators are pressing to get the spill corrected as quickly as possible, costs can balloon higher than necessary because less expensive alternatives might not be pursued even though they would satisfy the local regulations. Insurers know what constitutes realistic, reasonable costs and may be able to offer information such as cleanup resources in the area. Bringing the insurer into the process also helps avoid complications or disputes when a claim is processed.
As with all good risk management, forethought and planning are the foundations of an effective spill response. Upfront investments in staff time and resources in preparation for a spill–no matter how unlikely or infrequent–can pay dividends months or years later when a risk manager's or corporate officer's phone rings in the middle of the night.
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