Florida 2-20 General Lines Agent (Property, Casualty, Commercial Lines and Florida Law)Commercial LinesHard

A Florida-based software development company hosts its primary application servers in a third-party data center. They have a Commercial Package Policy (CPP) and a separate Cyber Liability policy. A sudden, unexpected power surge at the data center, not caused by a cyberattack, fries their dedicated servers, leading to a week of downtime. Which policy, if any, would most likely respond to cover the physical damage to the servers and the resulting business interruption?

  1. ANeither policy, as a third-party data center is not covered.
  2. BBoth policies would respond, splitting the costs based on their respective coverages.
  3. CThe Commercial Package Policy (CPP) property section, if it includes coverage for off-premises property or property in the care of others.
  4. DOnly the Cyber Liability policy, as it involves technology infrastructure.
Show answer & explanation

Correct answer: C. The Commercial Package Policy (CPP) property section, if it includes coverage for off-premises property or property in the care of others.

Physical damage to servers from a power surge is a property loss, not a cyber event. While the servers are off-site, a CPP can be endorsed to cover 'property off-premises' or 'property in the care, custody, or control of others.' Business interruption would then follow from the covered property damage.

Why the other options are wrong

  • A. A well-structured CPP can indeed extend coverage to property at third-party locations, especially if scheduled or endorsed.
  • B. The Cyber policy would not cover physical damage from a power surge. The CPP would be the primary responder for the physical damage and subsequent business interruption if endorsed correctly.
  • D. Cyber Liability covers cyberattacks, data breaches, and related intangible losses, not physical damage from a power surge.

CPP Off-Premises Property

Commercial Package Policies can be extended via endorsements to cover business personal property, such as servers, located at third-party premises like data centers.

  • Standard CPP property coverage is typically for on-premises.
  • Endorsements are necessary for off-premises property coverage.
  • Crucial for businesses using cloud services or external storage.

Memory trick: CPP Endorsement: Extending Your Walls.

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