Conference organisers mull options as APCIA becomes latest victim of COVID-19

The American Property Casualty Insurance Association's (APCIA) annual conference has followed the Monte Carlo Rendez-Vous to become the latest victim of the coronavirus with organisers deciding to hold the event online due to health concerns.

But the organisers of Baden-Baden in Germany and the Singapore International Reinsurance Conference (SIRC) have not yet cancelled their events with the possibility they may still go ahead as planned.

The APCIA stressed that although the re/insurance industry is grappling with tough times due to the ongoing global pandemic, these unprecedented circumstances underline the importance of coming together and staying connected as an industry.

The Association's president and CEO David Sampson gave that message as he confirmed that the body’s annual meeting will move online this year due to concerns related to health and travel during COVID-19.

The 2020 event will be held virtually from October 12-13 without the physical attendance of industry professionals.

The annual meeting, in its usual format, brings together attendees and industry speakers from all across the globe, and serves as a platform for renewal and policy negotiations in the North American property casualty insurance marketplace.

Sampson said: "With the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic being felt across the globe and corporate travel restrictions in place, both domestically and internationally, we made the decision to cancel the in-person component of our 2020 Annual Meeting, due to take place in Orlando, Florida.

"Above all, APCIA prioritizes the health and wellbeing of our attendees and staff, and this decision, while difficult, has been made with those values front of mind. However, recent circumstances underscore the value of coming together and staying connected as an industry to identify the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead."

Meanwhile, several other industry events, which are attended by re/insurers from all over the world, have either been cancelled or altered due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Monte Carlo Reinsurance Rendez-Vous 2020 has already been cancelled, while a question mark remains over Baden-Baden, scheduled for October 2020.

Meanwhile, the organising committee of SIRC has announced that it will decide by 1st September if this year's event will go ahead as scheduled or not.

The organisers said that the event will only go ahead "if we can be convinced that all precautionary measures as mandated by local authorities can be put in place to ensure the health and safety of all our attendees, and that international travel restrictions will be eased sufficiently to allow the safe and uninhibited entry of our legion of overseas attendees.

"For now, the SIRC Secretariat will continue to register delegates and accept partnership and meeting facilities bookings as normal with the assurance that should this year’s event be postponed, their commitments will be automatically carried over to the next SIRC with the due priorities accorded to them," SIRC said in a statement.