Great follow-up! Here’s a clear and detailed answer:
💻 Does Business Interruption Insurance Cover Cyber Attacks?
🟥 Short Answer: Not Usually (by default)
Standard Business Interruption Insurance (BI) typically does not cover losses from cyber attacks — unless:
- You have a Cyber Liability Insurance policy with BI coverage, or
- You’ve added a special endorsement to your BI policy.
🔍 Why?
Most traditional BI policies are designed to cover income loss due to physical damage, like:
- Fires
- Storms
- Vandalism
A cyber attack — such as ransomware, malware, or a data breach — doesn’t cause physical damage, so insurers usually deny these claims under a standard BI policy.
✅ When BI Might Cover a Cyber Attack
You may be protected if you have:
1. Cyber Liability Insurance (with BI coverage)
This specialized policy can include Business Interruption coverage for:
- Website outages
- Ransomware lockdowns
- Denial-of-Service (DoS) attacks
- Software corruption
2. Electronic Systems Endorsements
Some insurers allow you to add endorsements to your regular BI or property policy to include coverage for system outages caused by cyber incidents.
📌 Example:
Your retail site gets hacked and goes offline for 5 days.
If you have Cyber Business Interruption coverage, you could be reimbursed for lost online sales during that downtime.
⚖️ Cyber BI vs. Traditional BI: Key Differences
| Feature | Traditional BI | Cyber BI Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger | Physical damage (e.g. fire, storm) | Cyber event (e.g. hack, malware) |
| Covers Lost Income? | ✅ Yes, if triggered by covered peril | ✅ Yes, if caused by cyber incident |
| Includes Recovery Costs? | ❌ No | ✅ Often includes IT costs, legal, PR, etc. |
| Common in base policy? | ❌ Rare | ✅ In Cyber Liability Insurance |
💡 Pro Tip: Ask Your Insurer These Questions
- Does my current BI policy include coverage for system failures or cyber incidents?
- Do you offer Cyber BI as a standalone policy or endorsement?
- If my business is offline due to a cyberattack, what documentation do you need to process a claim?
🚀 Final Takeaway:
If your business relies on digital operations — e-commerce, remote access, POS systems, cloud software — a Cyber Business Interruption policy is a smart and often necessary investment.
Would you like help comparing Cyber BI policies or drafting a checklist to assess your current coverage gaps?
