The Terrorism Risk Insurance Act has been law for nearly 11 years now. It is self-implementing, meaning that it requires no further Congressional authorization or appropriations. The TRIA vests the Secretary of the Treasury with authority that is not reviewable by any Court.
Under TRIA, the Secretary of the Treasury, with the "concurrence" of the Secretary of State and of the Attorney General, has the power to certify any act as an "Act of Terrorism" which primary and excess property and casualty insurers are required to cover, so long as each and all of the following requirements is met:
1. The act is an act of terrorism.
The apparent purpose of this circular requirement is to make it official that the act in question meets the following requirements and that insurance companies must cover and cannot exclude coverage for losses resulting from the act in question.
2. The act is dangerous to human life, property or infrastructure.
If anything, the reports coming out of Washington, D.C. provide overwhelming evidence that the shutdown of the Federal Government and even more pronounced, that defaulting on the national debt, are both dangerous to human life, property or especially infrastructure.
3. The act resulted in damage within the United States.
If the government shutdown did not result in damage, there would be no reason to shut down the government even in the eyes of the terrorists responsible for shutting it down; the impending default, all the more so.
4. The act has been committed by an individual or individuals (the creatures responsible certainly qualify in this regard, too) to influence the policy or affect the conduct of the United States Government by coercion.
Any questions whether the shutdown or default is intended to influence the policy or affect the conduct of the United States Government by coercion?
I didn't think so.
To say again, TRIA provides a Federal Government "backstop" for insurance coverage provided under otherwise existing primary and excess property and casualty insurance policies. The backstop is 'limited,' if that is the right word, to $100 Billion or $100,000,000,000.00 per year. Current triggers for private insurer coverage and for the Federal Government backstop are when insured losses resulting from the certified acts of terror exceed any deductible, in which event the private insurance company pays a percentage of the coverage and the Federal Government pays the remainder of the coverage up to the annual cap.
In sum, the conditions have all been met for certifying the terrorist acts which forced the Federal Government shutdown and which are forcing a default on the national debt. The solution to this unwarranted terrorist attack is clear: Insurance to the rescue. Secretary of the Treasury Lew, contact Secretary of State Kerry and Attorney General Holder. Meet and concur, you might say. Then: Certify now. Certify here. Certify, baby, certify.
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A brief look into several other kinds of insurance coverages -- including contingent business interruption, "political risk," and others -- is offered by Mark Garbowski, Esq., an attorney with Anderson Kill, who posted an article online at www.mynewmarkets.com with the title, "Is There Insurance Coverage for Losses Stemming From Government Shutdown or Default?"
Please Read The Disclaimer.