These are unsettling times indeed.
Many insureds are concerned with how COVID-19 will impact their business—and understandably so. There’s nothing scarier than the unknown, and we’re all in the dark right now with respect to what the near future holds for the design and construction industries. Utmost in our minds are the types of claims that may be asserted against the design community as a direct result of COVID-19. I can’t help but parallel this to an earthquake or hurricane that devastates entire communities. If a design professional designs to the current and appropriate standard of care, can he/she be held responsible for unpredictable events of a magnitude never seen before? Could an insured predict the shut down of entire nations, thus impacting the ability to obtain construction materials causing significant construction delays?
