AIG, one of many world’s greatest industrial insurers, is contemplating chopping cowl for Russia and Ukraine, to defend itself from the danger of hefty claims as sanctions ratchet up and the warfare drags on, an insurance coverage dealer and a supply aware of the matter mentioned.
AIG is including exclusion clauses to insurance policies for companies working within the area throughout a variety of insurance policies, in line with the 2 sources who declined to be recognized.
Different main insurers are additionally trying to exclude Russia, Ukraine and even Belarus from a variety of insurance policies, the sources mentioned, citing some insurers and policyholders.
Reuters couldn’t decide if the potential discount in cowl would apply throughout all AIG insurance policies within the international locations. The insurer declined to remark.
“What we at the moment are seeing are the underwriters beginning to introduce Russia, Ukraine wording into their insurance policies,” mentioned Meredith Schnur, managing director, U.S. and Canada cyber brokerage chief at insurance coverage dealer Marsh, declining to call the insurers.
Brokers resembling Marsh act as intermediaries between company clients and insurers, and generally get entangled in drawing up insurance policies.
If AIG had been to chop again cowl for companies and firms working in Russia and Ukraine it could be the primary main insurer to take action, probably paving the best way for others to comply with swimsuit.
Whereas Russia has grow to be a no-go zone for a lot of firms resulting from sanctions imposed within the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, some multinationals proceed to do enterprise there in addition to in Ukraine in sectors starting from agriculture to power. They require insurance coverage to maintain their companies open.
Native firms additionally depend on insurance coverage for harm to items, buildings and automobiles and for damage or lack of lifetime of workers. Reuters couldn’t decide how a lot of AIG’s enterprise in Russia and Ukraine was centered on home corporations.
AIG, which recorded internet written premiums normally insurance coverage totaling greater than $26 billion final yr, has operations in Russia, in line with its web site, and is a significant international participant in sectors resembling power, development and cyber.
‘NON-NEGOTIABLE’
Sanctions on Russia are already forcing insurers to tug again from protection of restricted Russian entities and people, whereas UK and European sanctions on aviation insurance coverage prolong past particular person firms to all Russian corporations.
Insurance coverage brokers resembling Aon and Willis Towers Watson have frozen operations in Russia, whereas reinsurers Munich Re MUVGn.DE and Swiss Re SRENH.S are amongst firms which have mentioned they won’t write new enterprise within the nation, whether or not potential policyholders are sanctioned or not.
However AIG and different underwriters are going additional, including wordings into insurance coverage insurance policies to exclude cowl for Ukraine, Belarus and the Russian and Ukrainian operations of Western companies, trade sources say.
Insurers are involved about reputational harm of doing enterprise in Russia and they’re additionally nervous about property harm and delayed funds in Ukraine, the place the economic system has been pulverized by the warfare.
Some policyholders are already struggling to seek out insurance coverage.
François Malan, chief danger and compliance officer at French engineering agency Eiffage, mentioned final week that he was pressured to just accept an insurance coverage exclusion for transporting cargo in waters close to Ukraine.
“It was non-negotiable, it was not a query of worth – it was non-covered,” he mentioned.
Ships crusing into waters across the Black Sea and Sea of Azov, which embrace Ukraine’s coast, have to have further warfare danger insurance coverage which suggests paying a separate premium.
Some insurers are additionally chopping provision of this kind of insurance coverage as a result of rising perils, which embrace being hit by projectiles or floating mines, marine insurance coverage sources say.
PANDEMIC PLAYBOOK
Insurers usually add sure varieties of exclusion in insurance policies uncovered to potential battle, resembling in the course of the South Korea winter Olympics, however don’t normally exclude whole areas, as within the case of the Ukraine disaster.
The transfer to exclude dangerous areas of their enterprise mirrors insurers’ conduct following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Confronted with losses estimated at $100 billion, insurers rushed to exclude first COVID-19 after which all pandemics from insurance policies.
After additionally placing up premium charges, a lot of them reported robust earnings in 2021, the second full yr of the pandemic. Some trade sources say losses had been smaller than initially anticipated because of these actions.
S&P World final week estimated industrial insurers’ losses from the Russia-Ukraine battle might whole as a lot as $35 billion.
S&P mentioned the insurance coverage sectors prone to be most impacted had been aviation, commerce credit score, political danger resembling nationalization, cyber, political violence and marine warfare.
Swiss Re mentioned on Thursday that insurance coverage and reinsurance losses from the invasion had been prone to are available in across the identical as a medium-sized pure disaster loss resembling from a hurricane.
(Further reporting by Jonathan Saul; Modifying by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
