Guidance for Commercial Clients

Material Damage

If there’s material damage to physical property, e.g. a fire or flood, business interruption cover will respond. COVID-19 does not involve ‘damage’ so is usually excluded.

Denial of Access & Notifiable Diseases

Some policies may have a ‘denial of access’ and/or ‘notifiable diseases’ extension added to them. Most restrict cover by listing certain diseases, and COVID-19 is not included. Although the UK Government have now confirmed COVID-19 as a notifiable disease, insurers will not be adding it to their list, particularly mid-term.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has backed this market-wide position, stating that standard policies are “designed and priced to cover standard risks, not those that are very unlikely, such as the effects of COVID-19”.

Information correct as of: 01/04/2020

If you bought your policy prior to the outbreak and have a travel disruption section, you may be covered if the trip is cancelled or curtailed outside of your control.

Where the Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) have advised against all travel, or all but essential travel and you had previously purchased tickets before the FCO advice was given, you may be covered.

However, if you travel to locations that are not listed by the FCO, you won’t be insured for cancelling your trip or returning early.

Medical treatment abroad should be covered, but please be aware that local facilities may be unavailable and medical repatriation or transfer to available facilities, will be subject to any travel restrictions.

Information correct as of: 01/04/2020

Some insurers are aware that many Commercial Motor customers will want to support people in their communities who are impacted by COVID-19, including the NHS Volunteer Responder scheme.

Subject to your permission and any existing conditions (such as driving restrictions), if your employees use their company vehicle for voluntary purposes (non-payment), to transport medicine or groceries to support others or for the activities of an NHS Volunteer Responder, some insurers may include this cover.

However, please refer to your usual Sutton Winson contact, who will check with your insurer first.

Information correct as of: 01/04/2020

It's possible that some businesses may face claims for failing to protect their employees or Third Parties from contracting COVID-19.

Your business could be exposed to liability claims and specified diseases aren’t normally excluded. You would have to be proven negligent before a claim could be considered under the policy.

Examples could include:

• Making staff work together
• Permitting staff business travel abroad

Employers and Public Liability policies would cover defence costs if claims arise, whether valid or not.

Directors & Officers

Senior Management must focus on continuing regulatory compliance and employee protection. If they don’t, examples of claims include:

• Insufficiency of business continuity plans
• Unsatisfactory financial or management decisions
• Relaxation of IT security which leads to a data, business or reputational loss

Information correct as of: 01/04/2020

If you have organised an event it would be understandable that you may wish to cancel it over fears of contracting the virus.

Standard event cancellation policies contain an infectious disease exclusion and unless specific cover has been purchased, it’s likely any costs incurred will not be insured. Even in circumstances where specific cover has been purchased, it will still be necessary for the venue to be directly affected by an outbreak.

Information correct as of: 19/03/2020

Your liability insurance covers your employees working from home. We suggest that employers and their staff check their home insurance policies, to make sure home working is permitted - it’s likely to be, unless any Third Parties will be visiting or manual work is being done.

Health & Safety

Health and Safety responsibilities to home and lone workers are unchanged. Risk assessments are still needed and you’re responsible for the safety of the equipment you supply.

It’s unreasonable (and against health advice) to expect your Health and Safety personnel to visit every homeworker. Completion of a standard questionnaire or some form of online assessment could be considered reasonable.

You also still need to comply with the Working Time Directive.

Data Protection

GDPR, general data and privacy protection remains important and employees need to be reminded of their obligations. Simple measures include:

• Remembering to lock the screen on their laptops.
• Securely filing or locking away paperwork.

Your IT team should have considered the use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), password protected access to systems, cloud security and general standards of encryption. It’s particularly important to maintain cyber security resilience given that a significant number of cyber/data protection claims arise from unsecured VPNs.

Information correct as of: 01/04/2020

Healthcare providers are currently treating COVID-19 like any other eligible respiratory illness which would be covered under your healthcare policy.

Information correct as of: 19/03/2020

Property Damage

Currently COVID-19 is not covered under a property damage policy.

Portable Computer Equipment

Your current cover may already include portable computer equipment used away from the office. Please check the position with us and tell us about any significant changes or increases (e.g. you are going to buy a large amount of new laptops).

Unoccupied Premises

A lot of premises are now and will be unoccupied, which brings significant insurance implications.

Most property policies (Buildings, Contents, Stock, Equipment, Plant etc.) stipulate that the insurer should be notified about unoccupancy immediately. Failure to do so could invalidate your insurance.

Full cover will remain in place for a set period (e.g. 30 days) but this varies per insurer. Some are as little as 7 days. After that, insurers may reduce cover, impose additional conditions or charge an additional premium.

We are working closely with Insurers in an effort to make sure they are reasonable.

If you have had to leave your premises unoccupied, please make sure we are told as soon as possible. All security and safety measures must be put into operation and we recommend that you check on the property regularly (once a week), providing it is safe to do so.

Information correct as of: 01/04/2020

Firstly, you should always follow the advice given by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), local (overseas)/UK health authorities and, if abroad, the local British Embassy. 

FCO advice can be found at www.gov.uk/guidance/travel-advice-novel-coronavirus  

Secondly, contact your travel provider (airline/hotel/tour operator/etc) to discuss options such as refunds, amendments or postponements.

If you are currently at home but have booked a trip

Now that the FCO has issued advice against all non-essential travel for the next 30 days (which is likely to be extended) you may have to cancel or re-organise a booked trip. 

Your first port of call should be your travel provider(s) (airline, hotel, train company, etc) to see if you can obtain a refund or amend your travel plans.

Next speak with your credit card provider (if the trip was booked using a credit card, and the amount paid was over £100) as you should be able to claim under Article 75 of the Consumer Credit Act.

Finally, speak with your travel insurance claims team (you’ll find their details in your policy wording).  Any claim made would be subject to the policy terms and conditions, when the policy was purchased and when the trip was booked.

Information correct as of: 19/03/2020