Conn. Gov. Rowland Urged to Sign Terror Exclusion

The American Insurance Association (AIA) is urging Connecticut Gov. John Rowland (R) to sign the legislation (HB 5200) passed on April 30 by the state legislature to create a terrorism exclusion in the Standard Fire Policy (SFP).

“This change will help to stabilize the insurance marketplace by removing an unpredictable and potentially infinite risk in the form of a terrorist attack,” said Paul Moran, AIA vice president, northeast region. “This bill recognizes that there is a threat that no one thought about before September 11, 2001.”

AIA said it worked with the Insurance Association of Connecticut, which led the effort, to pass this legislation.

Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Oklahoma and Virginia have already provided some form of terrorism exclusion to the SFPs in their states.

Without the exclusion, Connecticut’s Standard Fire Policy would require insurers to pay for losses from a fire following a terrorist act, even if the policyholder had rejected the terrorism coverage available under the federal Terrorism Risk Insurance Act.