The dispute stemmed from an April 2013 explosion at Exxon’s Beaumont, Texas refinery during a maintenance project. Exxon had contracted Brock Services, Ltd. to provide scaffolding services. Under the service agreement, Brock was identified as an independent contractor and was required to obtain insurance coverage, including workers’ compensation, employer’s liability, and commercial general liability (CGL) policies naming Exxon as an additional insured. However, the contract also gave Exxon the option to procure those coverages on Brock’s behalf, which it did through an Owner Controlled Insurance Program (OCIP). Exxon procured workers’ compensation and employer’s liability policies covering Brock and its employees and deducted the insurance cost from payments made to Brock.
