ACCC grants interim authorisation for arrangements to assist assessment of business interruption insurance claims arising from COVID-19

The ACCC has decided to grant interim authorisation to the Insurance Council of Australia (the ICA) and its members who issue business interruption insurance policies. The ICA lodged an application for authorisation to enter and give effect to agreements to use a web-based portal called the DSpark Tool that is being developed to assist in the assessment of business interruption insurance claims arising from COVID-19.

The DSpark Tool will aggregate existing public information in a single database. It will assist insurers assessing COVID-19 related business interruption claims to identify:

1. whether there have been any COVID-19 exposure sites at, or within a specified radius of, the insured premises; and
2. relevant public health orders issued by State and Territory Governments that have applied to a policy holder's business.

Interim authorisation will allow the applicants to begin testing and further developing the DSpark Tool and give participating members time to incorporate it into their claims management processes.

Interim authorisation also extends to any other parties who use the DSpark Tool in the future.

Interim authorisation does not extend to information sharing or agreements between insurers as to their individual claims assessment processes, pricing or terms of future policies. The participating members will continue to assess claims and deal with customers independently of each other.

Interim authorisation commences immediately and remains in place until it is revoked, the application for authorisation is withdrawn or the date the ACCC's final determination comes into effect.

Interim authorisation protects the arrangements for which authorisation is sought from legal action under the relevant provisions of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 while the ACCC considers and evaluates the merits of the substantive application for authorisation.

A copy of the ACCC's decision, including the reasons for granting interim authorisation, is available on the ACCC's public register at: Insurance Council of Australia

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