Parenting Advice That Can Save You Money on Professional Liability Insurance

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By Robert J. Connor, JD, CIC
Senior Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer, Berkley Alliance Managers, a Berkley Company

October 4, 2021

Parents often struggle with ways to get their children to develop good habits that will serve them well later in life. There is the age-old debate of the carrot versus the stick and which one, reward or negative consequences works best.

At Berkley Design Professional, we come down squarely in the carrot column! We believe that positive reinforcement is the way to encourage our policyholders to develop beneficial risk management habits.

Berkley Design Professional policyholders can earn up to 40% in credits on their annual professional liability insurance policy. Yes, we did say 40%. How, you ask? I would be happy to explain.

Policyholders that use a limitation of liability clause in their contracts for professional services can earn up to a 25% premium credit each policy year. More specifically, we look at the percentage of fees that a design firm has under contracts with limitation of liability clauses with the liability limited to $250,000 or less and we take that percentage and cut it in half to arrive at the credit percentage–up to a maximum of 25% credit. For example, if a design firm has 40% of their fees derived from contracts that contain a limitation of liability clause limiting their liability to $250,000, then that firm would earn a 20% premium credit. It is that simple!

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Per Project Primary Limits Coverage

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By Robert J. Connor, JD, CIC
Senior Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer, Berkley Alliance Managers, a Berkley Company

September 9, 2021

Berkley Design Professional has always strived to provide innovative coverages and Per Project Primary Limits is one of those coverages!

We believe this new way to look at and cover A&E professional liability risks can provide significantly increased value for our policyholder’s insurance dollar.

A few years ago we introduced Per Project Primary Limits in many different ways and thought this innovative coverage would become very popular. We were mistaken.

To figure out why we weren’t writing more of this game-changing coverage we contacted a number of our brokers. And the resounding answer–it was too confusing to explain to a client or prospect and they didn’t have the time to explain a coverage they probably would not sell. So, we put our heads together to see if we could provide a simpler way to describe this innovative approach to A&E professional liability insurance coverage. Here’s our updated, simpler explanation.

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Complimentary Webinar: A Design Professional’s Guide to Dispute Resolution

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Presented by:
Ted D. Levin, Member, Clark Hill, LLP
Andrew D. Mendelson, FAIA, Senior Vice President, Chief Risk Management Officer, Berkley Design Professional

Wednesday, September 29, 2021
10:00 am – 11:30 am Pacific Daylight Time
1.5 AIA Learning Units
1.5 RCEP Professional Development Hours
Berkley DP policyholders who participate in this program can qualify for a 15% Risk Management Education credit. Contact your agent for further information*

This webinar has been recorded and is available on demand for Berkley Design Professional policyholders and our appointed agents and brokers on the BDP Risk® Learning Management System.

bdp Risk® lms login

In today’s complex design and construction environment, disputes will occur. Often the difference between success and failure is whether you have planned for the inevitable. This webinar will show you the root causes that frequently lead to disputes and arm you with strategies to mitigate those situations before the project even begins. You’ll learn why it’s important to define the dispute resolution process in your contract—and receive sample contract language you can begin using right away. You’ll gain insight from a typical dispute resolution flowchart and a deeper understanding of the mechanics, costs, pros, and cons of these common methods: step negotiations, mediation, litigation, and arbitration. Finally, you’ll learn how to identify when trouble is brewing on your project and get a roadmap of what to do next.

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You’re Never Alone

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Free Claim Prevention Assistance

By Anthony Andersen
Senior Vice President, Professional Liability Claims Manager | August, 12, 2021

Having a Berkley Architects, Engineers & Consultants Professional Liability Policy means that you’re never truly alone. Even when you’re dealing with a situation that isn’t yet a formal claim, but is giving you an uncomfortable feeling that it may soon become one, Berkley Alliance Managers is here for you!

This post was updated on January 25, 2024. Find it here.

About the Author

Anthony has managed and handled claims for more than 25 years. He brings a wealth of A&E and construction related experience as well as knowledge regarding best practices and risk management. In his role as Professional Liability Claims Manager, Anthony provides managerial oversight to our claims staff. He received his Bachelors of Business Administration from Iona College. Anthony is based in Central Valley, New York.
Contact Anthony at [email protected].

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© 2021 Berkley Design Professional, a Berkley Company.
All Rights Reserved

Resilient design for a safer, more secure future

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By Andrew D. Mendelson | July 12, 2021

The consequences are undeniable. Global climate change has affected everything from the design and building of roads, bridges, homes and office complexes to the upgrading of our nation’s electrical grids and pipeline systems.

Unfortunately, the forecasts of many of the world’s leading climate research agencies are less than optimistic. According to NASA, the effects of global climate change are likely to continue “over this century and beyond” as the growing intensity and frequency of severe storm events, heat waves and wildfires increasingly wreak havoc on the nation’s infrastructure and ecosystem. In fact, the National Centers for Environmental Information, recently reported that 25 storm-related disasters in the U.S. caused more than a billion dollars in damages each from 2018 to 2019. Of these, the top five combined to cause more than $75 billion in damages.

As a result, a renewed emphasis has been placed on the creation of buildings and infrastructure that not only withstand severe natural events but remain habitable under extreme conditions. Even President Biden’s American Jobs Plan proposed wide-ranging initiatives promising that infrastructure projects developed under the plan would include funding to prevent, reduce and withstand the impacts of the climate crisis.

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Walter J. Adams, Jr. of Berkley Alliance Managers to Discuss Professional Liability in a Post-COVID-19 World at CLM 2021 Annual Conference

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Albany, N.Y. (July 21, 2021) – Walter J. Adams, Jr., vice president and assistant claims manager at Berkley Alliance Managers, a Berkley Company, will discuss ways to Get Ahead of the Claim: Professional Liability in a Post-COVID-19 World at the CLM 2021 Annual Conference to be held at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis in Atlanta, Georgia. During the roundtable discussion scheduled for Thursday, August 12th at 2:00 p.m. EST, Adams will highlight the novel claims faced by design and construction professionals in a pandemic environment and proactive methods to protect against increased exposures.

“Nearly every individual, organization and profession nationwide were impacted by the coronavirus,” says Adams. “Many construction projects were either delayed or canceled, which created incentives to accept less than desirable projects or contracts. This roundtable will profile the many challenges professionals overcame during this time and the risk management strategies that will help them navigate through a post-COVID-19 world.”

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10 Reasons Why Design Firms Should Use the BDP Risk® Learning Management System

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By Robert J. Connor, JD, CIC
Senior Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer, Berkley Alliance Managers, a Berkley Company

July 12, 2021

Design professionals are busy these days and often find it difficult to step back from their day-to-day business responsibilities to delve into the world of risk management education.

Fortunately, Berkley Design Professional has made it easy for our policyholders to find just the right risk management sessions and courses! The BDP Risk® Learning Management System (LMS), provides 24/7 online access to relevant risk and practice management content, streamlined online learning and education activity tracking and reporting.

Let’s take a look at the top ten reasons to use the BDP Risk® LMS today!

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Need Excess? We’ve Got You Covered!

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By Robert J. Connor, JD, CIC
Senior Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer, Berkley Alliance Managers, a Berkley Company

June 10, 2021

You receive a call from your design firm client asking for higher limits for their professional liability insurance policy. And you think…will their current carrier provide the Excess limits? If yes, has the firm reached its limit on the number of Excess endorsements on their policy? If no, what do you do?

For either of those questions, Berkley Design Professional has your answer – BDP Excess. We have an admitted, follow-form Excess Professional Liability policy that can be written over a competitor’s entire policy, on a specific client basis or on a specific job basis.  We offer limits up to $10 million.  In addition, BDP Excess is available to each of our brokers in all states. How is that for flexibility?

At Berkley Design Professional, we recognize that when your clients call with an Excess request, you need to be able to respond quickly to meet their needs. Otherwise, they may start looking for another broker. As a former broker myself, I can relate to that scenario as it happened to me. I lost a considerable account because the incumbent professional liability insurance carrier would not provide a specific-job excess quote and I could not find a viable, cost-effective alternative in sufficient time to meet my client’s needs.

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Fee Dispute Mitigation Reimbursements Coverage

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A small silver lining in an otherwise difficult situation

By Liz Molina
Assistant Vice President, Senior Claims Examiner, Berkley Alliance Managers, a Berkley Company

May 10, 2021

As long as I have been managing claims for design firms, one of the primary risk management principles held by architects and engineers (A&E) professional liability insurance (PLI) carriers is that a design professional should avoid suing their clients for unpaid fees.

Why? Because a suit for outstanding fees is usually met with a counterclaim for professional negligence. And, while in general, those allegations trigger coverage under an A&E PLI policy, the attempt to recover the outstanding fees is not covered because fees are not considered damages as defined in A&E PLI policies. Unfortunately, the outstanding fees become part of the negotiations when attempts are made to resolve the negligence allegations. In most cases, the design firm has to significantly compromise its fee claim – and sometimes completely walk away from it – in order to get the negligence claim resolved, even when some of the negligence allegations lack merit or would be difficult to prove. This leaves the design firm frustrated because they end up not getting paid, while at the same time having to spend their policy deductible to defend and/or settle the negligence claim. In essence, they actually lose more money, which does not even include the lost billable time that was spent helping to defend the claim instead of working on projects that generated income.

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Complimentary Webinar | Design-Build Public Infrastructure Projects: Risks and Challenges for Consulting Engineers, and Their Professional Liability Insurers

Posted by & filed under Events.

Presented by:
David J. Hatem, PC, Partner, Chair, Professional Practices Group, Donovan | Hatem, LLP
Andrew D. Mendelson, FAIA, Senior Vice President, Chief Risk Management Officer, Berkley Design Professional

Tuesday, May 18, 2021
10:00 am – 11:30 am Pacific Daylight Time
1.5 AIA Learning Units
1.5 RCEP Professional Development Hours

This webinar has been recorded and is available on demand for Berkley Design Professional policyholders and our appointed agents and brokers on the BDP Risk® Learning Management System.

bdp Risk® lms login

Berkley DP is pleased to offer a live webinar featuring David J. Hatem, PC, and Andrew D. Mendelson, FAIA.

Design-Build (DB) is increasingly popular as the delivery method of choice for many governmental entities (federal, state, and local) for public infrastructure projects. Those owners are attracted not only to the ability to contract on a fixed-price basis with a design builder who is responsible for both design and construction but also to the opportunity to transfer substantial risk—which would traditionally be retained by the owner—to that design-builder.

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