The spread of Ebola has pushed the threat of a worldwide pandemic into the spotlight. Are your agency and its business clients prepared to operate in a highly infectious environment?
The spread of Ebola has pushed the threat of a worldwide pandemic into the spotlight. According to a Harvard School of Public Health survey, 52% of Americans are concerned about the possibility of a large Ebola outbreak in the U.S. within the next year.
Whether you belong to that percentage or not, the international fixation on the issue grows daily as concern for post-infection plans come to the table. Are your agency and your business clients prepared to operate in a highly infectious environment?
One agent noticed a shop owner in Ohio volunteering to close down her business until officials determine the Ebola exposure does not put her clients or employees at risk.
Q: “Is there an endorsement or provision in the property policy that covers business income and employee expenses when the owner of the business volunteers to stop operations for a situation like this? If employees are infected, does workers comp pick up the treatment costs? And does the shop owner have a liability exposure if a customer gets the infection after visiting her store?”
A: “First, business income is usually triggered by direct damage to property on the described premises caused by a covered peril. Voluntarily shutting down your business because of the possibility of the spread of a disease is likely not a covered cause of loss. But, just in case, read the policy form(s).
In most states, if an employee contracts a disease during the scope and course of their employment, they might have coverage. Case or statutory law could indicate such an infection must arise out of the employment. So someone who gets pneumonia after working in freezing weather on a construction site might not have a valid workers comp claim. You would need to present a specific, fact-based scenario to someone who is an expert in workers comp or labor law in your state for an opinion.
Finally, whether the shop owner has a liability exposure is a legal question for an attorney. Our concern would be whether they have coverage under, for example, a CGL policy. For additional details, check out VU articles “Are You and Your Clients Ready for a Pandemic?” and “Swine Flu and the Homeowners Policy.”
I responded to a similar question on an IRMI LinkedIn board: “How would the GL form respond to an Ebola claim? I am thinking there would be coverage absent a communicable disease exclusion, but this just came up and I am just beginning my research.”
This was my response: “ISO has the CG 21 32 05 09 - Communicable Disease Exclusion endorsement for the CGL policy that would do the trick. Their corresponding BOP endorsement is the BP 14 86 07 13. As I recall from the ISO CGL filing, ISO introduced the CG 21 32 in response to concerns about bird flu and SARS transmissions. Expect insurers to use such exclusionary endorsements.”
Want to learn more? Visit the Big ‘I’ Virtual University for an updated pandemic article incorporating the recent Ebola threat.
Bill Wilson is director of the Big “I” Virtual University.
This question was originally submitted by an agent through the VU’s Ask an Expert Service. Answers to other coverage questions are available on the VU website. If you need help accessing the website, email logon@iiaba.net to request login information.
