History

In 1976, Ed Worley opened a small office outside of New Orleans, Louisiana, to serve the needs of the insurance industry clients in the assessment and processing of property and casualty claims. From the very beginning, the Worley family business was welcomed by clients seeking the personal attention necessary to aid them in reducing their pending caseloads while still maintaining a high standard of quality.

An early morning explosion from the Shell Norco Refinery destroyed homes in the community of Diamond, Louisiana, releasing 159 million pounds of chemical waste into the atmosphere. Worley is called upon to provide claims administration and class action administration. The Norco explosion is Worley’s first catastrophic event assignment.

In August of 1992, Hurricane Andrew made landfall on the Florida coast and subsequently on the Mississippi and Louisiana coastlines. At the time of its initial impact, Andrew was a category 5 hurricane (with sustained winds of 175 mph) and the aftermath was also, at that time, the costliest hurricane in United States history.

The earthquake struck in the San Fernando Valley about 20 miles (31 km) northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Damage occurred up to 85 miles (125 km) away, with the most damage in the west San Fernando Valley, and the cities of Santa Monica, Simi Valley and Santa Clarita. Total earthquake-caused property damage was estimated to be more than $20 billion, making it one of the costliest natural disasters in U.S. history.

In mid-October 1994, major flooding occurred in the San Jacinto River flood plain near Houston, Texas. Four pipelines, each carrying a different substance, were exposed, undercut, and eventually ruptured causing gasoline, fuel oil, crude oil, and natural gas to spill into the floodwaters and subsequently caught fire. Worley handled the reinsurance portion of the claim along with administration of mass tort litigation.
Photo: (Kerwin Plevka.Chronicle)

• Worley Catastrophe Service is organized to engage and fulfill some of the first national catastrophe service contracts for independent adjusting services. Before the end of 1995, Worley adjusters begin attaining carrier specific, catastrophic peril certifications.
• To better serve its expanding client base, Worley opens branch office locations in Baton Rouge, Lafayette, and Shreveport, Louisiana; Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, and Tyler, Texas; and Jackson, Mississippi.
• In July of 1998, Worley held it's first hosted corporate training event (later rebranded as the "Worley Claims Expo"). This two day event included presentations by insurance carrier clients, certification exams, and branch manager meetings.
• Worley's first custom built Home Office celebrates it's grand opening on August 8, 1998. The new building, located at 4736 West Napoleon Avenue, includes executive offices, meeting and conference rooms, a dedicated server room, and an apartment for overnight stays.
• Worley's Training Department is opened in the Metairie, Louisiana, Home Office in 1999
• Volume 1, Issue 1 of Worley News & Views - the Company's first newsletter was printed and mailed in the Summer of 2000. The issue included articles on "Deployment;" catastrophe equipment/tool needs; a summary of operations from Claims Service and Excalibur Investigations; and an article on "Saving for a Rainy Day."

A 16-inch crude oil transmission pipeline ruptured in Lake Barre, Louisiana, discharging an estimated 6,561 barrels (275,562 gallons) of crude oil. Worley was called upon to handle claims from fisherman, crabbers and charter boat captains as well as subrogation and reinsurance portions of the event totaling $21 million.

Worley celebrates 25 years of service with new branding, a new trade show booth, and the introduction of of Worley's trademarked slogan, "CERTAINTY in a World of Risk."

Despite the loss of the Worley Home Office facilities in the storm, we maintained uninterrupted catastrophe response services to our clients during Hurricane Katrina’s landfall. In the wake of the most costly natural disaster in the history of the United States, Worley provided field adjusters, general adjusters, claims managers, loss adjustment specialists, and IT infrastructure and support services to some of America’s best-known insurance companies, handling in excess of 100,000 claims.

• Almost 130,000 residents across the Louisiana coastal region received more than 8.9 billion to rebuild and protect their homes in the wake of hurricane Katrina. Worley provided the call center, inspection, and quality control agents responsible for the more than 20,000 home evaluations and over 10,000 small rental unit inspections that made this possible.
• May 19, 2008 –Equity capital investment is made by an investor group led by Seaport Capital Partners, a private equity firm focused on the communications, information and business services, and the media sectors.
• On July 23, 2008, the M/V TINTOMARA, an ocean-going tanker, collided with DM 932, an unmanned barge carrying slightly less than 10,000 barrels of #6 bunker oil. Worley is retained to provide call center services per the OPA-90 and handle claims related to the loss. Worley was also tasked to make payments to ORSO’s involved in the cleanup and act as a liaison between the responsible parties and reinsurance carriers.
• On Sept. 11, Hurricane Ike makes landfall along the Texas coast near Galveston. Due to its immense size, Ike caused devastation from the Louisiana coastline to Corpus Christi, Texas.‪ In addition, Ike caused flooding and significant damage along the Mississippi coastline and the Florida Panhandle. Damages from Ike in U.S. coastal and inland areas are estimated at $29.5 billion and included the largest search-and-rescue operation in U.S. history.

On June 5th of 2008, Worley celebrates the grand opening of its current corporate offices in Hammond, LA. The offices consist of an administration building and training facility. The latter is over 20,000 sq ft and houses state of the art technology to assist with the many classes and seminars that Worley provides.

In 2010, an explosion on an offshore drilling rig resulted in the largest accidental marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry. Worley was called upon to begin ramping up its catastrophe response, ultimately opening and staffing a centralized claims center and 35 field office locations within a 30-day period. Operating from the Texas coast to the Florida Keys, Worley provided location selection, lease execution, permitting, and full operational functionality to facilitate community outreach and claims intake.

• April 25–28, 2011 – The largest and one of the deadliest tornado outbreaks ever recorded occurred, affecting the Southern, Midwestern, and Northeastern United States and leaving catastrophic destruction in its wake. The outbreak hit Alabama and Mississippi the hardest, but it also produced destructive tornadoes in Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee and Virginia. In total, 355 tornadoes were confirmed by the National Weather Service – roughly 25 percent of which were strong/violent including 4 that were destructive enough to be rated EF5, which is the highest ranking possible on the Enhanced Fujita scale.
• Aug. 27, 2011 Hurricane Irene – the largest and most destructive hurricane of 2011. Damage estimates throughout the United States are estimated near $15.6 billion, which made it the seventh costliest hurricane in United States history. Irene first made landfall in St. Croix; made a second landfall in Puerto Rico; then mainland landfalls on the Outer Banks of North Carolina; Little Egg Inlet, New Jersey; and Brooklyn, New York.
• Bayou Corne Sinkhole – In August of 2012, a sinkhole discovered in Assumption Parish, Louisiana, led to the evacuation of 350 local residents. Worley provided support and handled the evacuation and additional living expenses of those residents.
• Oct. 9, 2014 Aquiline Capital Partners LLC (“Aquiline”), a New York-based private equity firm investing in financial services, acquires a majority stake in Worley Claims Services.

Superstorm Sandy was named the deadliest and most destructive hurricane of the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season. It was also the second most costly hurricane in United States history. Worley property and auto adjusters were making their way to staging areas before Sandy even made landfall and after landfall, some 1100 adjusters, began the arduous task of helping those affected rebuild what was lost.