Our business is subject to significant operating risks and hazards that could result in damage or destruction to property, injuries or loss of life, which could result in losses or liabilities to us.
Construction and maintenance sites are potentially dangerous workplaces and often put our employees and others in close proximity with mechanized equipment, moving vehicles, or other construction or worksite hazards. On most sites, we are responsible for safety and are contractually obligated to implement safety procedures. Our safety record is an important consideration for us and for our customers. If serious accidents or fatalities occur or our safety record was to deteriorate, we may be excluded from bidding on certain work, expose ourselves to possible lawsuits, and existing service arrangements could be terminated, thus having a material adverse impact on our financial position, results of operations, cash flows and liquidity. Further, regulatory changes implemented by OSHA or the U.S. Coast Guard could impose additional costs on us. Adverse experience with hazards and claims could have a negative effect on our reputation with our existing or potential new customers and our prospects for future work.
The businesses of marine infrastructure construction, port maintenance, dredging and salvage are generally subject to a number of risks and hazards, including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, hurricanes, adverse weather conditions, collisions with fixed objects, cave-ins, encountering unusual or unexpected geological formations, disruption of transportation services and flooding. These risks could result in damage to or destruction of, dredges, transportation vessels, other maritime structures and buildings, and could also result in personal injury or death, environmental damage, performance delays, monetary losses or legal liability.
In the concrete segment, our workers are subject to the usual hazards associated with providing construction and related services on construction sites including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, hurricanes, adverse weather conditions, and flooding. Operating hazards can cause personal injury or death, damage to or destruction of property, plant and equipment, environmental damage, performance delays, monetary losses or legal liability.
Our current insurance coverage may not be adequate, and we may not be able to obtain insurance at acceptable rates, or at all.
We maintain various insurance policies, including general liability and workers’ compensation. We are partially self-insured under some of our policies, and our insurance does not cover all types or amounts of liabilities. We are not required to, and do not, specifically set aside funds for our self-insurance programs.
At any given time, we are subject to multiple workers’ compensation and personal injury claims. We maintain substantial loss accruals for workers’ compensation claims, and, until recently, our workers’ compensation and insurance costs have been rising for several years notwithstanding our emphasis on safety. Our insurance policies may not be adequate to protect us from liabilities that we incur in our business. In addition, some of the projects that we bid on require us to maintain high levels of builder’s risk insurance. We may not be able to obtain similar levels of insurance on reasonable terms, or at all. Our inability to obtain such insurance coverage at acceptable rates or at all could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and financial condition.
Furthermore, due to a variety of factors such as increases in claims and projected significant increases in medical costs, our insurance premiums may increase in the future and we may not be able to obtain similar levels of insurance on reasonable terms, or at all. Any such inadequacy of, or inability to obtain, insurance coverage at acceptable rates, or at all, could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and financial condition.
Insurance liabilities are difficult to assess and quantify due to unknown factors, including the severity of an injury, the determination of our liability in proportion to other parties, the number of incidents not reported and the effectiveness of our safety program. If we were to experience insurance claims or costs above our estimates, we might be required to use working capital to satisfy these costs rather than to maintain or expand our operations. To the extent that we experience a material increase in the frequency or severity of accidents or workers’ compensation and health claims, or unfavorable developments on existing claims, our operating results and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected.
Our operations are subject to environmental laws and regulations that may expose us to significant costs and liabilities.
Our marine infrastructure construction, salvage, demolition, dredging and dredge material disposal activities are subject to stringent and complex federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations, including those concerning air