Australia: General insurance body launches BI test case
Source: Asia Insurance Review | Sep 2020
With insurers denying coverage for losses caused by COVID-19 closures, the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) has commenced proceedings in the NSW Supreme Court to test the application of certain infectious diseases exclusions in business interruption (BI) policies.
According to an official statement, lawyers representing the ICA have submitted pleadings to the court for a combined test case. This consists of two separate small business claims that were lodged with the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) as part of its dispute resolution process.
The ICA understands that AFCA will use the outcomes of the test case in determining complaints arising in respect of business interruption claims with the infectious disease exclusion. A