As the debate regarding how to manage coverage exclusions related to viruses like COVID-19 continues, experts predict that the pandemic will likely disrupt investments, finance and capital, underwriting, claims, and actuarial functions due to events ranging from the closure of nonessential businesses to changes in state and federal regulations. Our latest Return to Workplace webinar brought together top insurance and risk management thought leaders to discuss what they believe to be the most significant impacts of COVID-19 on property and casualty insurance.

The panel featured Rod Sockolov, EVP and Founding Principal of Newfront’s Property & Casualty Practice, Garrett Koehn, President and Director of Western US Operations for CRC Insurance Group, and Jeff Hager, Regional Executive Officer, Pacific North, for Chubb.

Here are their top considerations for the insurance industry:

• The insurance market was already hardening and the current environment (COVID-19, stock volatility, and ongoing economic challenges) will only exacerbate the pressure on carriers to drive higher rates.

• If the government intervenes, the best outcome would be a public/private partnership where the insurance company infrastructure would be leveraged to deliver public funds through business interruption claims.

• Employment practices and cyber claims are expected to pick up.

Important elements for companies to focus on:

• Talk to your broker about filing any non-workers’ compensation COVID-19 related claims. In most cases, it is recommended but there may be scenarios where it may not be.

• Work with your broker to get in front of your underwriter(s) to tell your story and get the best outcome for your renewal.

• Talk to your broker if you have not been notified about premium relief, payment options, and other insurance carrier concessions.

For further reading, the panelists suggested the following articles:

• D&O — Stanford University / CRC Group Securities litigation update and Insurance Market update on YouTube.

• CRC Group Podcasts

• CRC Group Tools and Intel for COVID-19

We invite you to view Newfront's Blog for Return to Workplace Considerations for Employee Reentry.

Visit Newfront Events to register for upcoming webinars in our Moving Forward Together: Return to Workplace Series.