World
Trade Centre - Market News Update
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27 Sept 2001 UK: Postscript - WTC clearance claim restrictions Some of the issues raised following this month's terrorist attacks on the US will pose significant claims problems for insurers, reinsurers and insureds. While there will be fewer issues arising out of the two planes that hit the Pentagon and crashed in a field in Pennsylvania, the damage at the World Trade Center could be a nightmare. Payment of life benefits have already hit a snag, as it may be difficult at times for families to provide a proof of death certificate. This generally requires a seven-year wait, the time that most states require before a missing person can legally be declared dead. The New York State insurance department is, however, preparing a simple form for beneficiaries to state when they last saw the person alive before the bombing and some additional confirmation. People with group life programmes will be allowed to present an employer's confirmation as authority. Loss adjusters are also having problems because, until the WTC property is cleared, they are unable to enter the area around it, and even when it is allowed, physical inspections will probably be limited to the surrounding buildings. A Hartford spokesperson said: "When our adjusters can get past the devastation and human cost of these events, they will approach it as they would any other tragedy. In areas out of the WTC, adjusters are working with customers to process property, motor and business interruption claims." State Farm hoped customers had back-up files of inventories, software, business tools and other important records, a spokesman said. It has a catastrophe team of adjusters, which is prepared to drive mobile claim vehicles to the city the moment the area becomes open, thus avoiding any possible interruptions in the commercial airline services or the number of bags they are allowed to take with them. One question which runs through all four crashes after President Bush's announcement that the bombings were "acts of war" is whether "acts of war" exemption in many policies will apply in this case. Many of the larger insurers, including Ace, AIG, ING Americas, Chubb, Northwestern and St Paul have said they will not apply the provision, while many property insurers, including XL Capital and Arab Insurance have not made a decision either way. Reinsurers
have not been quick to reach any decision, although a Swiss Re
spokesperson said there was "no doubt the insurance industry had any
choice at all other than to pay, for political reasons as well." Source:
POST MAGAZINE 27/09/2001 P56 |
