HISCOX APPOINTS NEW UK COO

Property/casualty insurers would have to collect premiums for 150 years to make up for the expected business interruption losses related to Covid-19, according to a report from the Geneva Association. The ‘evidence-based’ study carried out in collaboration with the University of St Gallen, concluded that p/c insurers have nowhere near the capacity needed to shoulder estimated global Covid-19 insurance industry losses of more than $4trn in 2020. By comparison, the industry collects just $1.6trn in annual premiums, of which just $30bn is for business interruption. Kai-Uwe Schanz, the Geneva Association’s head of research and author of the report, said pandemic-induced business losses defy basic, widely-accepted criteria for insurability. “Governments and insurers urgently need to figure out the right partnership modalities to prepare for – and respond to – extreme risks like pandemics,” he said.