Civil unrest risk is on the rise. Is your business prepared?

Civil unrest risks have intensified in the past year, fueled by geopolitical conflicts, political polarization and the U.S. presidential election. Rallies, demonstrations and protests related to the Israel-Hamas war, immigration, abortion rights and climate change have heightened concern among law enforcement agencies, municipalities, businesses and other institutions.

Why? Such protests have the potential to escalate into clashes or disruption that pose risks to people and property, which also can lead to business interruption and reputational harm.

The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) reports that the United States continues to be at a heightened risk of political violence and instability, while pointing out that a large proportion of protests are peaceful, according to ACLED’s U.S. Crisis Monitor. But outcomes are difficult to predict, and disruption and damage to businesses can occur even without full escalation into violent, chaotic riots.

The city of Chicago prepared for over 20,000 Gaza conflict protesters on the first day of the Democratic National Convention Aug. 19, and several other protests were planned during the week, calling for action on issues such as climate change, economic justice, LGBTQ+ rights and racial equality. Police stepped up training, and many businesses along protest routes boarded up windows and storefronts ahead of the convention.

Several protests calling for a Gaza cease-fire have made headlines in 2024. In April, pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a number of highways and bridges in New York, Illinois, California and the Pacific Northwest, impeding access to some major airports and cities. Traffic was stopped for over four hours on the Golden Gate Bridge, stranding cars with impacts that included missed surgeries, work and flights.

“Civil unrest is a growing trend, something that insurance and reinsurance companies and our customers are concerned about,” said Zurich North America Head of Property Joffre Mishall. “Businesses should check to make sure their property insurance policies cover what is referred to as strike, riot and civil commotion risk. But there are additional steps businesses can take to mitigate risks to their business if these events occur.”

Often, such gatherings are managed by public authorities to minimize or avoid damage and disruption, and many jurisdictions require applying for a permit to hold such gatherings. As always, preparation long before such events are scheduled will put businesses and institutions in the best position to maintain safe and sound operations.

“Planning and developing response and business continuity strategies ahead of time and communicating with all parties involved is imperative for businesses,” said Andrea Blair, Zurich Resilience Solutions’ Director of Business Resilience & Continuity Management Services, who presented a session related to this topic at RIMS RiskWorld in May. “Establishing response plans in advance mitigates the impact of these events and allows for a smoother recovery process, should an issue arise.”

Protecting people

When civil unrest arises — or appears on the horizon — business leaders should communicate as soon as possible with staff to express concern, emphasize the importance of situational awareness and provide critical guidance to ensure employee and customer safety, Blair said. Among the points to emphasize:

• Ask employees to confirm or update their contact information so they can be easily reached.
• Urge employees to avoid city centers and districts where protests and riots may occur; promote virtual meetings where possible to avoid travel to these areas.
• Make sure all employees are familiar with the company’s emergency and security plans.

When there is a civil disturbance near or at a place of business, actions such as shutting off gas, boarding up the building or turning on generators may need to be taken immediately, and employees need to know who is accountable and can be contacted for what.

This is one reason that, as part of ongoing risk management, it’s critical for businesses to complete a thorough risk assessment and develop an action plan to prepare the property and its people for a potential civil unrest incident. Organizations need to engage leaders across multiple functions, plan mitigation actions and formulate emergency response and business continuity plans. And then, crucially, they must adequately communicate those plans across the organization. They must consider actions before, during and after a potential event.

It may sound daunting, which is one reason Zurich underwriters and risk engineers provide many resources and insights to help. It’s also why senior leaders of a business can’t draft plans alone. Here are a few contacts that leaders should be sure to enlist in formulating a civil unrest risk management plan.

Local law enforcement and city officials: Local authorities can provide recommendations on protocol in the event of a civil disturbance and contacts in emergencies. Businesses can ask to be informed of any planned events that may be targets for protest activities. Building and maintaining these relationships is important.

Legal counsel: Consulting in-house or outside attorneys on plans and responses is essential to avoid inadvertently compounding risks. Any plans must take into consideration First Amendment free speech protections, while also understanding what types of actions are not protected. While local laws vary, vandalism, incitement of violence or obstruction of emergency services generally are unlawful.

Internal communications, public relations and social media teams: These teams play a critical role in ensuring timely, effective communication before, during and after an emergency. Often these groups have a Crisis Communications plan and it’s important to ensure related plans are coordinated and aligned. They also can help ensure employees are properly informed and trained in how to respond in the event of a civil unrest incident.

Protecting property and operations

Businesses should assess their facilities’ vulnerability to civil unrest. Glass-front buildings, vacant buildings, proximity to large conference complexes and first-floor occupancy of a multi-tenant structure may heighten exposures. Certain types of businesses may be more attractive targets for protests as well.

Whatever the size or type of business, it is not immune from civil unrest. Organizations should ensure they have spelled out the procedures for regular maintenance and testing of alarm, fire protection and power systems. If the business doesn’t own the building it occupies, leaders should review their lease, understand who is responsible for each part of the building's management and ensure contact lists are accessible to employees. “In times of civil unrest, first responders can be spread thin and may not be able to provide protection promptly,” Blair said.

A risk assessment may call for an action plan that outlines site-hardening enhancements, such as gates or other barriers for glass-front buildings, which can help prevent vehicles from breaching entrances. They may want to identify board-up services that can be available to cover windows ahead of planned protests and consider other vendors who could perform emergency-related services. Most companies contract for security and facilities services.

“It is important to understand what those contracts include and exclude and this needs to be considered in pre-planning,” Blair said. “As far as operations, they also should consider whether service or manufacturing considerations should be made to re-route supplier and finished goods as well as any other critical business transportations and facility infrastructure operations.”

Reviewing insurance coverages

Insurance is just one piece of the puzzle, but it’s critical to ensure the business has the proper insurance coverages to respond if needed to a civil unrest scenario. Checking some of the nuances of coverage is key. These types of incidents can trigger several types of coverage, including but not limited to the following:

Property and/or terrorism insurance: Most commercial Property policies encompass strike, riot and civil commotion (SRCC) risk unless they expressly exclude it. In addition to covering damage to buildings, equipment, inventory and other assets, Property policies also may provide business interruption coverage if a facility cannot be accessed because of damage.

General Liability and Umbrella or Excess Liability: Civil unrest can spread and pose threats to individuals on the premises of a business. While coverages vary, General Liability, Umbrella and Excess Liability policies may provide coverage for a business in the event a claim is brought against them by someone who alleges they have suffered injury or personal property loss due to the business’ negligence. Businesses may face differing levels of risk and responsibility for such occurrences based on local laws, regulations and other dynamics.

Workers’ compensation: These policies could be triggered if employees are injured while performing job duties during a protest or civil unrest.

Management liability: These policies could come into play if the leadership of an organization is accused of responding poorly and failing to de-escalate tensions during a civil unrest incident. Examples of allegations include discrimination against protesters, retaliation against employees who engage in protests and failure to call law enforcement.

“Civil unrest and disturbances are potential risks for businesses of all types and sizes,” Blair said. “Mitigating the risks isn’t always expensive or extensive. At Zurich our risk engineering teams and underwriters have the experience, insights and resources to help our customers understand and manage these risks.”