NU Online News Service, May 17, 1:39 p.m. EDT

Just in case this weekend’s NATO summit in Chicago leads to violence and rioting, as has happened in other cities hosting world leaders, at least one insurer is reminding risk managers to prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

This Sunday and Monday, Chicago will host the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s summit where close to 10,000 delegates and journalists from 50 countries are expected to descend upon the city along with a throng of protestors.

This will be the first meeting of officials outside of Washington, D.C., says the host committee, which hopes to use the event to “highlight [Chicago’s] economic vitality, its arts and architecture, and its can-do spirit.”

In one sense, there has already been one victim of the conference after the committee dropped insurance broker Aon Risk Solutions from finding liability insurance for local police when the firm was unable to secure coverage at a reasonable price. Instead, the committee decided to use the city’s insurance broker, USI, and utilize existing coverage for the event.

Recognizing the possibilities that the two days of meetings could cause serious disruptions, Zurich released a 10-page white paper to inform and remind risk managers how to plan for the worst-case scenario.

“NATO Summit: High profile event brings heightened risks,” tells risk managers that while law enforcement will be doing its best to keep a lid on protests and other events, businesses should do some planning too.

“Having your own plan in place will help mitigate any injury to employees and damage to property if law enforcement cannot arrive at the place of protest in time,” the report says.

Marcus Cooper, Midwest regional executive for Zurich North America, says the main thrust of the paper is for risk managers to have a disaster plan in place and up to date.

He says it will be important during the two days of the NATO meeting to keep employees informed of any situation. That means having a communication system in place that will provide necessary information.

“This is to put the awareness out there and be prepared for any incident,” says Cooper, adding that the ultimate intent is to maintain the regular course of business.

Cooper says that, overall, clients have not shown a lot of concern about the potential risks in Chicago this weekend, but some have asked specific questions such as whether glass in the office building should be protected or whether it’s covered by insurance.

He says most feel that despite the disruptions, it will be business as usual.

Offering advice for clients, Cooper says businesses should try to limit the number of visitors to the office during the two-day event, put off large shipments or deliveries, and control the flow of traffic in and out of office buildings.

He says there has been no spike in requests for any type of insurance coverage, and Zurich customers do have some form of business interruption coverage in their commercial policies.

With offices in Chicago, Cooper says Zurich will be operating in a “business as usual” mode, but will be ready to implement its crisis-management plan should anything go wrong. This includes making an 800 number available and increasing communication for employees.

“The major concern is to protect your most valuable asset, and that is your people,” says Cooper.

Special Reports /

NATO Summit Has Chicago-Area Risk Managers Tuning-up Disaster Plans

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