Sparking debate: Lithium-ion risks

Alexandra Wyard, director of technical underwriting at Allianz Personal Lines, explained the scale of the issue – devices with lithium-ion batteries are now everywhere – and stressed the need for stronger regulation and consumer awareness of the risks.

On whether insurers should take a more proactive role - through education, policy design or loss prevention – Wyard said: “I would doubt policymakers necessarily have the detail of what the root cause of these fires, but we do.

“There is a moral obligation for the insurance industry, when we get these new emerging risks, to really work with wider society and deliver some solutions. We can not back away from this.”

Charles Tinworth, senior property D&F underwriter at IQUW, addressed the perception of insurers being overly risk averse when it comes to raising concerns about lithium-ion batteries.

He said: “Often insurers can have an unfair reputation for being overly cautious and risk averse, but I don’t think that is what we are saying.

“We are at the forefront and have a lot more information than perhaps any one individual has. It is about really bringing that to life. It is not about insurers, brokers and risk engineers saying this is an awful risk, let’s get rid of lithium-ion batteries.

“The world now exists with these whether it is electric vehicles, tablets, hoovers, etc. How do we manage that risk? That is key.

“Sharing that information – and hopefully bringing everyone along with us – will stop large warehouse fires and houses catching fire and people being without homes for a while.”

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