Mall operators seek Finance Ministry intervention for bleeding business
Struck hard by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, mall owners across the country have knocked on the doors of the finance ministry and Insurance Regulatory Development Authority (IRDA) to get insurance companies to cover business interruption insurance claims to offset losses suffered during the lockdown period. In India, under traditional business interruption insurance policies, physical damage to property is the only criteria to trigger business interruption loss, while pandemics and epidemics are specifically excluded. Insurance companies, therefore, are refusing to accept any claims arising out of shutdown stating that exclusion of pandemics and closure due to this direction does not constitute physical loss or damage. In a letter to both finance ministry and IRDA, the Shopping Centers Association of India (SCAI), has sought insurance companies to reimburse actual recurring expenses incurred by mall owners one quarter after the normalcy under the said insurance cover.
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