Will your Business Insurance cover losses related to the Corona Virus?
The over-simplified answer is probably not - Coverages in BUSINESS INCOME and EXTRA EXPENSE are generally triggered by a COVERED CAUSE of LOSS, and in general, Viruses are not considered COVERED Causes of Loss - and - in many cases are specifically excluded. There is one area in some policies that there is a very small chance it may provide some limited coverage - ( business income - civil authority). However, I have not found any contracts yet where this would apply. - Reach out to your broker to review your specific contracts as every insurance carrier has different fine print.
So, what can you do? - Limit your exposure
- Practice Exceptional housekeeping
- Limit in-person meetings as much as possible
- Postpone / cancel all non essential travel
- Consider liberalizing sick leave policies so employees don't feel the need to "work through a cold"
- Where practical - encourage employees to work from home.
- Hang in there - As business owners, we have all been through tough times - we will get through this one too