The Association des Caterers de France, severely affected by the Covid-19 crisis, has decided to take legal action against Axa in order to be compensated for "
the financial operating losses linked to the suspension of their activity
".
"
The Caterers of France will initiate the legal fight which is essential so that the insurers show contractual loyalty and respect their commitments
", explains in a press release the organization, citing only Axa by name.
Read also: The Covid-19 pandemic is costing Axa dearly
For the association, which brings together 37 high-end independent caterers, “
the survival of an entire profession (is) at stake
”.
The network, which represents 204 million annual turnover and 1,500 employees, thus intends to rely on “
all contracts offering a guarantee for operating losses triggered by events such as closure by order of the authorities, lack of suppliers, lack of customers, impossibility of access (...);
events which are well characterized in this crisis
”.
Still claiming to be very affected "
by the multiple restrictions that the authorities continue to impose, and this since March 2020, on the exercise of their activity
", the Caterers of France include their approach in that of other catering professionals who have already prosecuted.
Since the start of the pandemic, legal remedies by companies have indeed multiplied against insurers such as Axa in the wake of the publicized victory at the end of May of restaurateur Stéphane Manigold, who finally announced that he had found a financial agreement. with the insurance giant.
The question centers around business operating losses.
The sector explained that it was unable to cover these losses.
However, if the vast majority of contracts did not cover losses in the event of a pandemic, the vagueness of some of them opens up breaches.
Asked by AFP about this action, Axa replied: "
To date, we are not aware of a summons issued against us
".
"
We confirm that in the vast majority of cases, there are no guarantees for a generalized epidemic situation and that in the rare cases where the contract was not clear on this subject, we have proposed a solution individual for the customers concerned, who are less than 2000
”, added the insurer.
Read also: Insurers do not want to carry (alone) the burden of the pandemic
The association refers to statements made by the boss of the Axa group at its general meeting in June, stating that "
for all these contracts, the transactional route would therefore be preferred
".
But, continues the organization, “
the negotiations seem to be stalling.
To date, no insurance compensation has been released by Axa for the benefit of its policyholders who are members of the Les Traitors de France association
”.
"
The concessions are non-existent, as if it were a question of waiting until these policyholders can no longer recover from this crisis, asphyxiated
", add the Caterers.
"
After the announcement of the insurance world, the situation becomes worrying
."