Environmental damage insurance
The environmental damage insurance (UPS) is a company insurance against damage to the environment.
With the Environmental Damage Act of November 14, 2007, those who cause environmental damage in Germany are not only liable for damage to individuals, but in principle for damage to flora, fauna, water and soil, and are obliged to remediate.
Liability risks for companies
For companies, this liability situation entails a large number of incalculable risks . Companies are liable for damage resulting from an incident as well as from approved normal operation. Another new feature is that environmental associations can, if there are signs of damage, file a complaint against the competent authority, which actually has to take action against the perpetrator if damage is imminent. In addition, the so-called direct liability can be used in the search for the cause of environmental damage . This means that managing directors and board members can be made personally liable for the remediation of environmental damage caused.
Coverage concepts
The risks resulting from this new liability situation are not taken over by the coverage concepts of environmental liability insurance . The environmental liability insurance only offers coverage for claims for compensation in the event of property damage or health impairments to people - however, ecological damage is not included.
For this reason, the General Association of the German Insurance Industry , GdV, has published two non-binding model conditions for the insurability of damage that may be subject to compensation under the new Environmental Damage Act. The General Conditions for Environmental Damage Insurance (USV) and Basic Environmental Damage Insurance for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises are non-binding recommendations for insurance companies that usually adopt them on the German market.
The practice of only insuring accident-related damage, as is the case with civil law claims for compensation under the Environmental Liability Act , was also applied in these general terms and conditions. In contrast, damage from so-called approved normal operation is not insured under the new environmental damage insurance either.
The model condition provides basic coverage for damage outside of the company's own property and can be extended to damage to one's own property - even for soil contamination within the meaning of the Federal Soil Protection Act, also known as " soil insurance ". However, the extension of the basic coverage only applies if the parties have expressly agreed this against a correspondingly higher fee.
Retroactive liability
Some insurance companies have announced that they will also offer retrospective damage coverage for the period between April 30 and November 14, 2007, for which the law provides for retroactive liability. Retrospective cover for environmental damage is only possible if the company is not aware of any environmental damage by the time the contract is signed.
literature
- Marc Schröder: EU environmental liability directive, environmental damage law and environmental damage insurance. 1st edition. Association of the sponsors of the Institute for Insurance at the Cologne University of Applied Sciences 2008
- Joachim Vogel / Jörg H Brasch (author): Recognizing and classifying environmental risks according to the environmental liability model: A practical guide - with information on environmental damage insurance. Hardback edition. 4th edition 2007
- Peter Salje / Jörg Peter: Environmental Liability Act (UmweltHG). Comment . 2nd edition Munich: CH Beck 2005.
