The ‘leapfrog’ application has been filed on a “precautionary basis” by the UK regulator and seven insurers

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and seven insurance companies have filed precautionary ‘leapfrog’ applications to appeal to the Supreme Court. Via the leapfrog application, the appeal will go directly to the Supreme Court, skipping the Court of Appeal.

The regulator said its intention has been to achieve clarity on affected business interruption (BI) policies at speed throughout the process. “We believe that clarity was provided in the initial judgment handed down on 15 September,” it added in a statement.

The FCA said it was continuing to work closely with the eight insurers and two intervenors that participated in the test case to reach an agreement in principle on a range of issues whereby an appeal process would not be required, and payments would be made on eligible claims as soon as possible. 

The regulator said that while positive discussions were continuing “with all parties”, the ‘leapfrog’ application has been filed on a “precautionary basis” in the event the agreement was not reached by close of business Wednesday. ”The FCA understands that seven insurer parties have made similar precautionary applications,” it added.