About Jeff McLellan:
Jeff McLellan is the Practice Leader within the Professional Services Division at BFL Canada. Jeff has many years experience working with the AECOO industry from the insurance sector. Jeff sat down with CanBIM this month to give us some insight to his view of BIM in Canada. Jeff also presented at the Vancouver Regional session.
CanBIM: What is your role at BFL?
Jeff McLellan: I run our Architects & Engineers Practice for Western Canada. Last year I assisted over 250 Architectural and Engineering firms with their professional liability and other insurance and risk management needs.
CanBIM: How is BIM affecting the way you conduct business?
Jeff McLellan: At this point in time it has had no impact other than regular discussions with clients about its impact to their firms.
CanBIM: Is the insurance industry prepared for BIM?
Jeff McLellan: Sadly no, typically as an industry we are and always have been very reactive. There have been comments over the years about policies being amended to include specific language or coverage going back as early as 2002 but I can’t find any evidence that any insurer has actually introduce anything on their standard policy wordings to deal with BIM. That being said our own wording that some of our partner insurers agree to use does include an extension that affirms coverage.
CanBIM: Could the insurance industry benefit from increased use of BIM in Canada?
Jeff McLellan: Yes, I believe that if properly implemented BIM has the capacity to reduce risk both in design and construction. Clash detection is an area where I believe BIM can prove very valuable and this is an area where I think claims can be prevented. I also a think that the completed model could prove beneficial in the event of a property loss and contribute to reduced claim repair costs.
CanBIM: How will the insurance industry adapt to handle BIM and prefabrication?
Jeff McLellan: Traditional policies particularly those professional liability insurance ones carried by the design team offer protection from third party claims. The collaborative nature of BIM Level 2 and above means that situations could present themselves where the consultant is asked to contribute financially to resolve it, this would not trigger coverage under their policies which means that financially they could be at risk.
CanBIM: How will the insurance industry adapt to handle information management?
Jeff McLellan: The insurance industry and legal community will play an important role in dealing with any issues that arise from the management of the model. That being said it will unfortunately be after the fact when a problem comes to light.
CanBIM: From the perspective of the insurance industry, what are the risks and rewards on BIM?
Jeff McLellan: If properly implemented BIM can provide benefits to a project and its participants without really shifting the risks in any way. The upfront planning and discussions that should be part of any BIM project will help to reduce problems on the project resulting in fewer claims. As previously mentioned the completed model could prove valuable in dealing with any property claims which will help reduce costs.
Further adoption of BIM in Canada is bound to disrupt other industries. Our time talking with Jeff gave great insight to the way the insurance industry will grow alongside the construction industry. Thank you Jeff for working with us this month!
If you or your firm would like to collaborate with CanBIM in the future, please reach out!
