A high-profile rugby injury has brought an emerging insurance issue into the limelight this week after All Black centre Ryan Crotty was ruled out of the second Bledisloe Cup test.
Crotty sustained a concussion in Saturday’s clash with the Wallabies after colliding with team-mate Jack Goodhue – the injury is one which both sports teams and insurers still have limited information about yet refuse to underestimate.
“It’s not nice to see, it’s just a tough injury,” said fellow All Black Sam Cane. “Everything else has a time-frame but there’s just so much unknown with head knocks and it seems like you can be only one away, if it’s the wrong one, from it being the end of it.”
Steve van Leeuwen, national head of sport at Gallagher, agreed there is a dearth of solid information on the subject of head injuries which poses a significant challenge for the insurance industry.
“The medical science surrounding head injuries is evolving and, because the insurance industry is data driven, without clear cut data and medical definitions it becomes difficult to know how an insurance policy would respond,” said van Leeuwen.
“This uncertainty is impacting the insurance market,” he continued. “Insurers, both nationally and internationally, are nervous of the long-tail nature that concussion claims could present and this is where personal accident policies could help to mitigate losses.”
However, Van Leeuwen did note that the insurance industry is already changing thanks to growing concerns around concussion and its long-term impacts.
“Insurers are not ignoring this issue,” he stressed. “The insurance market is hardening and, in order to provide terms, underwriters require more detailed information on the response to head injuries individual teams and leagues are making.
“We are already seeing policy structure and framework changes. Over the coming years, the industry could move towards a different set-up of insurance policies or utilise different versions of a policy to respond to concussion-related risks.”
Van Leeuwen also said that sports teams and organisations are working towards making activities safer which will help insurers covering the risk.
“Each of the major codes has a concussion plan in place that is constantly evolving as more medical information comes to light,” he said. “Whether it is in the form of baseline testing, in-depth head injury assessments, sport rule changes or mandated sit-out periods, leagues and teams are responding to the challenges head injuries present.”
