Business interruption insurance is a useful way to reduce commercial risk, but it’s not always clear when and how you can claim. Our lawyers can review your policy, advise if you have a claim, and may be able to challenge insurers who’ve refused cover.
Each insurance policy has different requirements that businesses must meet before they can claim. We’ll review your policy wording to advise on these requirements and whether you meet them.
We’ll give your claim the best possible chance of success, even if you’ve been refused cover before. Our team will help you put together evidence to support the claim and communicate with your insurers to reach a settlement.
In some cases, we may also be able to challenge your insurer if they refuse to cover your business interruption. We’ll advise on your chances of success, and whether it’s the best course of action for your business.
Our dispute resolution solicitors help businesses across all industry sectors, from SMEs to international corporations. We always aim to negotiate settlements as quickly as possible, but we’re also experienced at resolving disputes at court when needed.
We know that business interruptions come with cash flow issues, and offer a wide range of funding options to help you access the legal advice you need. We also have a fixed-fee business interruption insurance service for businesses affected by coronavirus.
Get started today – call us on 0808 271 2602 or contact us online.
How Do I Make A Business Interruption Claim?
In general, there are three main issues to consider when making a business interruption claim:
- Check your Policy Wording – While the Courts have set out some guidance, every policy is worded differently and every business is different. Whether your policy will cover a particular loss is a matter of interpretation. We can help you with this.
- Notification – You must tell your insurer about your claim in a particular way and within a particular timeframe depending on your policy. If you don’t, you may not be able to recover your losses.
- Loss – You should calculate how much you think your business has lost due to the interruption and collect evidence. Normally business interruption insurance will cover loss of gross profit or rent, additional expenses, and the cost of preparing your claim. Your policy may have a maximum sum that you can claim.
Every insurance policy is different, and interruptions will impact every business differently as well. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution to making a business interruption insurance claim.
Our lawyers will get to know your business and work with you to understand the commercial impact that the interruption has had. We’ll study your policy wording and explain what you need to do and advise what you may be able to claim for. We can also help challenge your insurer’s decision.
Fixed-Fee Business Interruption Insurance Advice
We understand that coronavirus has made claims both more pressing and more confusing for many businesses.
That’s why we’ve launched a fixed-fee service. For £600 (including VAT), our experts will help you navigate your business interruption insurance policy by:
- Discussing your business and the impact of Covid-19
- Conducting a detailed review of the policy wording
- Advising you of the merits of your insurance claim and the best way forward.
If we think that you can claim and you want to go ahead, we can then help with your claim at an additional cost. We offer a variety of pricing and funding options, some of which allow us to share the risk with you and defer your legal costs until a later date. We’ll advise on the best options for you based on the details of your case.
Coronavirus Business Interruption Insurance Claims
An FCA test case on 15 September 2020 has clarified some issues about making business interruption insurance claims during the coronavirus pandemic.
In general, businesses with "Disease Policies" are most likely to be able to recover coronavirus-related losses. Generally, these policies cover losses caused by a notifiable or infectious disease if that disease has occurred within a certain distance of the business’ premises.
Businesses with "Denial of Access Policies" or "Hybrid Policies" may find it more difficult to successfully recover coronavirus-related losses from their insurers. Generally, these policies cover losses resulting from the denial of access to business premises due to government actions, advice or restrictions, as a result of a notifiable infectious disease, emergency or incident, within a certain radius of those premises.
Each insurance policy is different and insurers will assess coverage on a case-by-case basis. We can check your policy wording, identify the type of cover you have, and advise what this means for your business.
For more information about how we can help with business interruption insurance claims, call us today on 0808 271 2602.
