Specialist Pollution Insurance & Legal Liability
for Small and Medium Businesses
provided by and in partnership with EDIA Limited
Pollution Spill Response
Spills, do they matter?
Your business operations, whether large or small may unexpectedly cause a spill, which leads to environmental damage, third party property damage or even a risk to human health. If this event occurs it is key that a robust and effective approach is undertaken.
You may already have a spill response plan as part of a regulatory requirement (for example a permit or license condition). Some businesses are pro-active and have an active spill procedure or response protocol, this is maybe driven by previous issues or a positive risk averse approach. If your business benefits from a spill incident response plan you can be assured that you have attempted to mitigate the time and impact to the best of your abilities in your busy business environment.
Why do I need a spill response plan?
If there is no regulatory requirement for a spill plan from your business operations this does not mean that you do not need one. Pollutants are not just hazardous substances and can originate in various forms of predominantly solids and liquids (for example, hot water, milk, yeast, chemicals, oils) and airborne particulates.
The benefits of a robust workable and adaptable spill plan can help in the following ways:
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Your employees will consistently understand the emergency actions required in the event of a spill both on your own site and for works you undertake on third party property;
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If a pollution incident is not contained or is mis-managed this can lead to significant and complex clean-up requirements that could take years to resolve;
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If you pollute groundwater beneath your site this can be extremely costly and affect local community drinking water supplies;
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You may be required to pay compensation for damage caused to third party property and humans impacted by the release of pollution you are liable for;
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An unactioned pollution incident may result in what is deemed a criminal offence or you may become encompassed into complex, lengthy legal proceedings to defend your position; and
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More social media platforms may highlight the incident which is uncontrollable by you and may impact your business reputation.
How do I get a spill response plan?
Through a third party, we can offer the following to support your business:
Basic Spill Incident Response Plan – aimed at smaller businesses with low-risk activities (for example, activities with mainly oil storage). This involves a desktop assessment of your business activity and sites.
Spill Incident Response Plan (Health Check) – Consultant reviews existing procedures / spill plan and recommended improvements based on a desk-based assessment;
Spill Incident Response Plan (Advanced) – Consultant conducts an on-site walkover audit and formulates a bespoke spill plan including own site activities and business operations on 3rd party site.