Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

UK COVID-19 business interruption litigation: NDDA and 'at the premises' rulings, furlough deductions, limits of indemnity, and 2024 appeals towards a potential Supreme Court second test case

Published on: 25 March 2024

Published by a Law360 reporter

Legal News

Article summary

Since then, companies across Britain have been locked in legal wrangles with their insurers over whether business interruption policies should respond to lost revenue during that extraordinary period. Over the next few months, a number of major Court of Appeal cases are listed, with the possibility of further test claims reaching the UK Supreme Court, hinting that an end may finally be in sight for policyholders. Aaron Le Marquer, a partner at Stewarts Law LLP, said he considers we are in the final throes of the coronavirus business interruption fight, at least for direct claims, and that the appeals due this year should settle the outstanding points for policyholders whose losses remain unresolved. He hopes these rulings will bring long-awaited clarity.

FCA takes guard

The first lockdown to stem the spread of coronavirus was announced on 23 March 2020. Soon after, business owners quickly discovered that insurers were reluctant to pay out, even where policy wordings for business interruption included cover for closure due to the spread of an infectious disease. In the summer of 2020, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) brought a test case on behalf of an estimated 370,000 companies across the country, including those in hospitality...

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