(NEW YORK) July 17, 2014 – RIMS, the risk management society™, is encouraged by the Senate’s passage of S. 2244, the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA) reauthorization bill. Introduced back in April 2014, the TRIA bill passed the Senate with overwhelming bi-partisan support.
“With the House and the Senate both in agreement that the need for a reauthorized TRIA bill is a necessity, it’s time for the two groups to come together and devise a final version,” said RIMS President Carolyn Snow. “A common misperception is that TRIA only impacts organizations here in the United States. Any global business that has facilities, employees or components of their supply chain here in the U.S. will be affected should TRIA expire. This is a worldwide insurance issue.”
RIMS continues to support the following principles in development of a long-term solution for TRIA:
- Without a TRIA-type program, many entities will simply be self-insured due to lack of availability or affordability of coverage or both - leaving their companies and their workers exposed to an event that could bankrupt the company.
- The new program should ensure an orderly and efficient response to minimize any market disruptions and ensure benefits are available to any victims - individuals or companies – from a catastrophic loss scenario.
- A private and public partnership provides the best alternative to addressing the long-term needs of availability and affordability of insurance to cover acts of terrorism.
- The solution needs to address the long-term availability and affordability of insurance coverage for nuclear, biological, chemical, and radiological events caused by terrorism.
- All commercial property, workers’ compensation, auto and general liability lines should be included in any new plan.
- Insurance companies writing commercial lines should be required to participate in the program and be required to make coverage available for acts of terrorism.