Each year, more than 5,000 workers are killed on the job. Additionally, more than 3.6 million employees are seriously injured each year while at work. Because of this, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) holds a nationwide event each August called Safe and Sound Week, which promotes the importance of companies incorporating safety and health programs into their workplace. This year, the event runs Aug. 12-18, 2024.
In what is being called “the most important cyber accumulation loss event since NotPetya,” the July 19, 2024, global technology outage (CrowdStrike) will produce scores of insurance claims across a range of policies, test cyber policy wordings,and sharpen the industry’s focus on single points of failure.
The commercial property insurance segment has been characterized by ongoing premium increases for much of the past decade. According to industry data, such rate jumps reached record-setting levels in 2023, surging by an average of 20.4% in the first quarter alone and only slightly falling to 18.3% in the latter half of the year.
The general liability insurance market has faced hardening conditions in recent years, largely due to increasing claim frequency and severity. As such, most policyholders have encountered ongoing rate jumps, stringent underwriting standards and limited capacity.
Company drivers are exposed to several risks on the road. In fact, according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics report, transportation incidents are the leading cause of work-related fatalities in the United States. Additionally, the most recent data from the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety found that U.S. traffic crashes cost employers over $72 billion annually, demonstrating that drivers can also create major liabilities for a company.
Cyber incidents—including data breaches, ransomware attacks and social engineering scams—have become increasingly prevalent, impacting organizations of all sizes and industries. Such incidents have largely been brought on by additional cyberthreat vectors and growing attacker sophistication. As these incidents continue to rise in both cost and frequency, it’s crucial for organizations to take steps to address their cyber exposures and bolster their digital security defenses.
It’s essential to be properly prepared for hurricane season, as these storms carry significant risks to safety and property. To raise awareness of the dangers of hurricanes, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) annually sponsors National Hurricane Preparedness Week. This year, it runs from May 5th to May 11th. With the eastern Pacific hurricane season beginning May 15 and the Atlantic hurricane season beginning June 1, now is a good time to review how to prepare for hurricanes and tropical storms.
The National Work Zone Awareness Week (NWZAW) will take place April 15-19, 2024, in conjunction with National Occupational Research Agenda’s (NORA) Construction Stand-down to Prevent Struck-by Incidents event. In 2021, 956 people died in work zones, according to the NHTSA FARS data. Also in 2021, 108 highway worker occupational fatalities occurred in road construction sites, based on BLS data. Further data is available on WorkZoneSafety.org.
On Tuesday, March 26, 2024, a large container ship traveling through the Port of Baltimore in Maryland collided with a concrete column supporting the Francis Scott Key Bridge, ultimately causing the nearly 50-year-old structure to completely collapse and shutting down one of the largest and busiest harbors in the United States.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nearly 500,000 workers are currently employed in the oil and gas extraction industry in the United States, and that number is on the rise as the world’s demand for energy continues to grow. This increase means more risks for well operators as they struggle to keep up with demand. Fortunately, there are many types of coverages available to those in the oil and gas industry to help mitigate these risks.
