Has COVID-19 Interrupted Your Business?

Government advice and new mandatory legislation passed to combat the spread of COVID-19 (the "Virus") has caused significant and ongoing disruption to many businesses. Those with Business Interruption ("BI") insurance may be able to claim for related financial losses however, interpreting BI clauses in the unprecedented context of the Virus has not proved to be a simple task.

To clarify the issue in the UK, the Financial Conduct Authority (the "FCA"), brought an expedited test case against 8 insurers, FCA v Arch Insurance (UK) Ltd and Others [2020] EWHC 2448 (the "Test Case"). Although the High Court considered the wording of just 21 policies from 8 insurers, the FCA estimated that 700 types of policies, over 60 different insurers, and 370,000 policyholders could potentially be affected by the Test Case.