Businesses have also suffered; a fact which is reflected in the turbulence observed in global financial markets and, closer to home, economists have predicted the UK economy is heading into a deep recession. The insurance industry underpins UK businesses and insurers have come under scrutiny at the point many consider to be the ‘moment of truth’. At Allianz we’ve always been committed to treating our customers fairly and have continued to make payment on all claims where we’re satisfied that claimants are covered by their policies. Whilst there’s inevitably been some difficult messages where policyholders were not covered, to date we’ve made payments on over 900 Covid-related claims and settled 475.

An outcome to the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) High Court Test Case, which seeks to resolve the issue of whether business interruption losses resulting from Covid-19 are covered under certain insurance policies, is expected in August. We welcome the steps outlined by the FCA and believe court rulings can be a useful exercise in providing necessary certainty for the industry and for businesses. As such we’ve worked closely with the FCA to provide them with any relevant information and are undertaking a review of our products in line with their guidance. It’s imperative that insurers and brokers continue to act in the best interests of their customers through offering products which are relevant and provide value for money.

We’ve adopted a number of measures to support our customers through the pandemic, both individually and collectively. These have included amending our policy unoccupancy conditions, taking a more flexible approach regarding changes to business descriptions and working closely with brokers to ensure that customers aren’t unintentionally uninsured by difficulties with renewals.

Our engineer surveyors, who are classified as key workers, have been working hard to make sure that factories, hospitals and other key services are safe and can continue to run smoothly, and in April we quickly prioritised early inspection of six lifts at the Nightingale NHS hospital prior to the admission of Covid-19 patients. I’m extremely proud of how Allianz has responded during this time.

If any positives can be taken from a global pandemic, they may be found in nature.

Scientists have named the global temporary slowdown in activity the ‘anthropause’ and reports have shown some positive impacts of the lockdown upon the environment, such as a reduction in air pollution and environmental noise levels. Conversely there have been some negative indirect effects due to safety measures including temporary bans on reusable coffee cups and an increase in online shopping and food ordering.