PHILADELPHIA - October 2, 2002 - ACE Casualty Risk today announced that it is entering the environmental risk market resulting in the creation of a new unit, ACE Environmental Risk. This new environmental and casualty underwriting unit will offer environmental liability products and services and will be staffed by a team of experienced environmental insurance professionals.
ACE Environmental Risk will offer a full range of environmental liability solutions designed to minimize bottom line impacts and provide hands-on management for those liabilities. These new products will be distributed through the brokerage community, and through wholesalers to the commercial market. Non-admitted products will be marketed through licensed surplus lines brokers. ACE's environmental liability offering includes premises pollution liability, contractor's pollution liability, remediation cost containment and blended finite risk programs. Additionally, other new product lines are under development.
Leading this new unit is Karl Russek, vice president, underwriting and risk management, who joined ACE Casualty Risk in July 2002. Prior to joining ACE, Russek served as assistant vice president, Risk Management for XL Environmental. He also was with ECS Claims Administrators, Inc. for seven years serving in various positions, the latest of which was vice president and managing consultant. Prior to that position, Russek was employed in a variety of positions within the environmental engineering and regulatory community.
"ACE has the financial strength and underwriting capabilities to service the needs of the environmental liability market," said Susan Rivera, president, ACE INA Holdings, Inc. "The creation of the Environmental Risk unit complements many of ACE's existing product offerings and overall business strategy."
Joining Russek in leading the underwriting efforts on the Environmental Risk team is Heather Lavelle, assistant vice president, Commercial Markets. Lavelle brings to ACE 10 years of experience in environmental underwriting and product management.
Supporting Russek and Lavelle are: Gregory Kelder, vice president, Claims, who brings to the team his 15 years of combined legal and claims management experience; Steve Piatkowski, assistant vice president, Engineering Services, who has more than 18 years of underwriting management and environmental consulting and engineering experience; and Daniel Robinson, assistant vice president, Division Counsel, who brings to ACE 8 years of combined environmental legal and claims management experience.
Russek and his team will be based in Philadelphia. "The combined talent and breadth of experience of these five professionals brings to ACE a tremendous knowledge in environmental insurance and financial services. This experience will prove to be invaluable in providing creative insurance solutions for the environmental liability market," said Geoffrey Gregory, president of ACE Casualty Risk.
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ACE INA Holdings Inc., whose ultimate parent is ACE Limited (NYSE: ACE), provides insurance and reinsurance products and services through operating subsidiaries for a diverse group of clients around the world. Additional information can be found at www.ace-ina.com.