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In recent weeks, two raccoons made headlines: A man fell from the ceiling and bit someone at a restaurant in Wisconsin.And another robbed the bottom shelf of a liquor store in Virginia, got drunkAnd fainted in the bathroom.
In both cases, businesses had to deal with the fallout, a process that often involved reaching out to someone Insurance The company may file a claim for damaged property, lost inventory, or, in some cases, injuries to the customer. In cases of roof vandalism and drunken robberHow will insurance play a role? It depends on two important factors, said Franklin Manchester, chief global insurance consultant at analytics firm SAS.
“The first question I would ask in this scenario is whether the raccoon was actually a wild animal or someone’s property/pet that could be identified,” Manchester said. Independent by email.
This is an important question because it can decide whether the claim will be business or not. personal insurance case,
If the raccoon or other animal is not a pet
If a business lost inventory or patrons were harmed by an animal incident, and the animal was not someone’s pet, the business would likely be liable and would need to file a claim through its commercial general liability policy, Manchester said.
Yet filing a claim does not guarantee that your insurance carrier will actually cover the incident. Why? Manchester stated, the principle of “known problem”.
If you know of your restaurant’s vulnerabilities, such as large holes in the wall or entry points in the ceiling of your building that should not have been there, your insurer may deny your claim because you knew about the condition that helped cause the claim. Either way, your insurer will send someone to investigate what happened.
They can first look for evidence of how many raccoons there are and whether there are obvious entry points where an animal could enter.
“Investigators would like to determine if this is … a group of raccoons … or an individual raccoon,” he said. “How did it get into the restaurant in the first place? Were the windows, downspouts and doors secure?”
If the investigator finds evidence of an infestation or rats, squirrels, or other animals that caused damage, your insurer may ask if you knew about the infestation. If you don’t do this, your claim’s chances may be better.
“If it’s not an infestation, and if those entry points were secured, and it is indeed a wild animal, the insurance company may ask ‘do you know about raccoons,’ and try to deny damages under the ‘known problem’ exclusion,” he said.
Even if you check all the boxes for preventative measures and you had no idea raccoons were active, there is one last scenario that could put you in danger of not having coverage for your clients’ medical issues due to certain animal-borne diseases.
“Communicable diseases are generally excluded… so, if the patron was bitten and became infected with rabies, he could be excluded,” Manchester said.
And, finally, if the damage is so bad that you have to close your business, you may be able to receive compensation for business losses through a business interruption insurance policy. According to the insurance carrier, this type of insurance helps recover some or all of the cost of revenue, lease and loan payments, taxes and certain expenses such as payroll. hartford,
If the raccoon is someone’s pet
Raccoons and other animals that damage business property or injure a guest can be a headache for a business, Manchester said, unless the animal in question is a pet. In that case, the pet owner’s personal liability coverage – not professional liability coverage – would be included.
“Now if the raccoon is someone’s pet – let’s say they left it in the car, after which it ran out into the parking lot and climbed onto the roof – then liability for the owner’s personal policy would apply,” he said.
But like other scenarios, there are a number of factors that can jeopardize a claim. For example, an insurer may attempt to argue that raccoons are exotic pets, and therefore are not covered by personal liability insurance.