DONS CHIEF’S PLEA AS INSURERS MOVE GOALPOSTS

turn of events, Cormack has alerted Conservative MP for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine, Andrew Bowie, who intends raising the issue with Treasury officials. ‘The bulk of our losses will likely be beyond the end of next month,’ said Cormack, with Aberdeen’s current policy due to be renewed at the end of next month. ‘We may be one of only a few clubs with an insurance policy that clearly covers the impact of a pandemic. Despite paying for that cover, we’ve been advised we’re not going to get it. ‘We accept our insurance company is acting within its legal rights but this leaves us bearing the continuing costs incurred as a result of the coronavirus, despite the outbreak occurring when we had cover.’ Many other clubs are waiting to discover if their insurance will cover them for the outbreak. The claims of many businesses have been rejected on the grounds that coronavirus does not represent a ‘notifiable disease’ — even though the cause of the pandemic was unheard of when many policies started. ‘Perhaps what is needed is for pandemic claims to be dealt with in a similar way to those arising from floods and terrorism. That is, through an industrywide, public/private insurance solution but with the cost of claims being spread across the whole of the insurance industry and the state’ added Cormack. ‘But, until that’s in place, would it not be the right thing for insurers to continue existing cover for so long as the consequences of the outbreak continue?’