It is carried in some small business insurance policies, but
can business interruption insurance save one’s fledging business in the time of
the COVID 19 pandemic?
By: Ringo Bones
If you still don’t have this coverage, it is likely too late
to purchase it now as insurance companies usually won’t cover losses for a
crisis that’s already underway. However, after COVID 19 blows over, you should look
at this small business insurance policy in the future. Some small business
insurance policies carry business interruption insurance clauses, either as a
stand-alone policy or part of an overall package policy. Depending on the type
of policy your business holds, you may have coverage for some types of losses.
However, there’s a good chance the coverage might be limited or contain
exclusions. This is because there are other “potential pandemics” that occurred
in recent years.
After the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak
in 2003, many insurance companies have updated their business interruption
policies to exclude infectious diseases. Every policy varies, so it depends on
the wording of your policy, its exclusions and limitations. Review your policy
and talk to your insurance agent to see what, if anything, your policy covers. But
policies that provide coverage to events as catastrophic as the still ongoing
COVID 19 pandemic will be more likely than not to carry a heavy premium.
