The Limits of Contingent Business Interruption (CBI) Insurance
CBI insurance can provide an important line of defense against losses caused by disruptions at the locations of your suppliers or downstream customers. This type of insurance is limited because it only provides coverage if the businesses you depend on are disrupted by physical property damage—for instance, if a supplier’s factory is damaged by fire and ceases operations. CBI does not protect for all perils; nor does it protect a business when roads are closed and employees cannot get to work or when products cannot be distributed, or other suppliers are affected.
Your CBI insurer may require your business to identify the specific supplier and customer locations to be covered by the policy. If you change suppliers, fail to update your policy and then a disruption occurs, you will not be covered by the policy.
Broader Supply Chain Insurance
Supply chain insurance provides far broader coverage than CBI insurance for business interruption caused by disruptions to your supply chain. In addition to covering disruptions caused by property damage to your suppliers’ or downstream customers’ businesses, supply chain insurance can cover losses caused by a wide range of events, including:
- Natural disasters.
- Industrial accidents.
- Labor issues (strikes, shortages, etc.).
- Production process problems.
- Political upheaval, war, civil strife.
- Riots or other disruptive civic action.
- Closure of roads, bridges, or other transportation infrastructure.
- Public health emergencies, e.g., pandemics requiring quarantine.
- Regulatory action.
- Financial issues, e.g., solvency, cash flow problems.
Suppliers in less politically stable nations or in places with more vulnerable infrastructure may be more prone to disruption.
Companies often have multiple tiers of suppliers, yet often only cover the first tier. As a result, more insurers are moving towards offering multi-tier coverage—where the whole supply chain is insured. Check whether your insurer offers this type of coverage.

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