COVID-19 Business Interruption insurance: beyond the FCA Test Case

1. The FCA Test Case: key outcomes and unanswered questions. We look at how the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in claims for Business Interruption insurance on a scale not previously seen. We discuss the key outcomes from the FCA Test Case, as well as some of the questions which were not answered by the FCA Test Case.

2. TKC v Allianz: in this episode, we look at the case of TKC v Allianz, in which the High Court considered whether closure under lockdown measures should be property damage for the purposes of a claim for BI cover.

3. Corbin & King v Axa Insurance: we look at the recent judgment of the High Court in Corbin & King v Axa Insurance. In the context of a claim under a “prevention of access” clause, the Court considered the application of the Supreme Court’s causation reasoning from the FCA Test Case, and how many limits of indemnity should be available under the Axa policy.

4. Closed List Disease Clauses: Rockliffe Hall: in this episode we consider the significance of a judgment in which the Court granted strike out of proceedings brought by a policyholder seeking cover for COVID-19 business interruption losses under a clause that was triggered by occurrences of diseases on a specified list, which did not include COVID-19.

5. The China Taiping award: in this episode, we consider the published decision of Lord Mance in the arbitral proceedings brought by policyholders against their insurers. The claims were made under a clause similar to a clause which had been held not to cover by the Divisional Court in the FCA Test Case. Lord Mance considered the extent to which the Divisional Court’s decision withstood the subsequent analysis of the Supreme Court.