Insurance Refund For COVID?
Some industries have been getting insurance refunds for their premiums because of COVID closures, but it’s not the industries you’d think of.
Dentists
The Dentists Insurance company is issuing insurance refunds for those affected by the pandemic. On April 24th, they announced they are refunding 50% of Professional Liability premiums for two months. They are hoping this money will provide financial relief to dentists who’ve closed due to shelter-in-place mandates.
They are refunding $3.7 million for their policyholders in the 15 states they have coverage. Just in California alone, they will refund $2.2 million in Workers’ Compensation premiums.
To be extra nice, they are also extending the grace period for insurance premiums, waiving fees for their online seminar, and temporarily waived all credit card and insufficient fund fees.
Restaurants
In Michigan, one restaurant is suing its insurer for an insurance refund for their commercial policy premium payment during the time they were forced to shut down because of the pandemic. Their commercial insurance policy includes commercial liability, commercial auto, and commercial umbrella.
Flo’s Pizzeria closed their dining room to the public from March 16th to June 8th. This led to a significant loss in revenue for the restaurant. The lawsuit is alleging that their insurer “has disregarded provisions in its policies that state the premium is an estimate, that it is possible overpay”. With this logic, they are arguing that they are required to return the overpayments.
Automobiles
In late March, many auto insurers volunteered a partial insurance refund to auto policyholders. The refunds ranged from 15% to 20% of monthly premiums and accounted for two months. For those who didn’t volunteer, some were volun-told.
California was the first to require premium refunds for personal auto and other lines of business. This was mandated by the insurance commissioner on April 13th. New Jersey also joined the trend.
Other states have highly encouraged insurers to consider refunding premiums. And where it’s allowed, some companies are offering discounts on renewal premiums instead.
Progressive refunded insurers and still made a profit for the month. They refunded 20% for April and May and still brought in a net worth of $1.3 billion for the two months. This phenomenon is called the “coronavirus windfall”. They also reported a drop in accident claims in March compared to last year.
Compared to our neighboring country, that’s nothing. One insurance company announced they are refunding an additional $100 million to its auto policyholders. This refunds 25% to 40% of their monthly premium. The initial refund was around $50 million, which brings the grand total to $150 million in refunds.
What do you think of industries getting refunds? Is it fair? Should they be receiving more? Let us know in the comments and follow us on Facebook to continue the conversation! If you want to make a difference, become a member today!
