AXA XL, a division of AXA, has designed a first-party cyber insurance option for businesses that buy 100 percent of their property coverage from AXA XL.
According to Michele Sansone, president of AXA XL's North America property insurance business, “Demand for cyber insurance is growing with good reason. Virtually every organization has some cyber exposure. Our clients will now have the confidence to know that their business interruption exposures are adequately managed with coverage for cyber and property on one policy form providing a comprehensive solution for first party loss and a streamlined claims process.”
John Coletti, AXA XL's chief underwriting officer for cyber and technology in North America, added, “A cyber event can put a business at a standstill for hours or days. Traditional business interruption is caused by physical damage from a named peril like windstorm, fire, or flood. Ingress/egress coverage and civil authority is addressed in standard commercial property coverage. With no physical damage per se, business interruption from a cyber event can be caught in a gray area. This coverage offers clarity.”
AXA XL explained in a statement that its first-party cyber endorsement provides protection for:
• Business Interruption and Extra Expense
o Coverage for loss of business income suffered as a result of a cyber security breach.
o Extra Expense coverage consists of additional costs that are incurred, including payroll, to reduce or avoid a further loss of income.
• Data Recovery
o Coverage for costs associated with restoration of electronic data, computer programs, and software because of a cyber security breach.
• Cyber Extortion and Ransomware
o Coverage for costs associated with managing a cyber extortion threat against the Insured.
• Data Breach Response and Crisis Management
o Coverage for costs associated with managing a data breach by breach response providers from AXA XL's comprehensive list of vendors.
o Coverage includes legal costs, computer forensics costs, notification costs, credit and identity monitoring and more.
Policyholders who add AXA XL's first party cyber option to their property insurance policy also have access to:
• Complimentary proactive cybersecurity services provided by AXA XL's breach response providers.
• AXA XL's online resource, CyberRiskConnect.com to learn more about cybersecurity readiness and incident response services.
• 24/7 claims support via a hotline, staffed by in-house claims managers if clients have any reason to believe they have suffered a cyber incident.
Victoria Spears
Victoria Prussen Spears is senior vice president of Meyerowitz Communications Inc., a law firm marketing communications consulting company. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and Brooklyn Law School, Ms. Spears was an attorney at a leading New York City law firm before joining Meyerowitz Communications. She may be contacted at [email protected].