Lloyd's moves to redefine war as grey-zone conflict exposes gaps in century-old exclusions

Lloyd's of London is moving to redefine war in insurance terms, weighing an independent panel to decide what qualifies as war and whether the five-power exclusion still makes sense. The Five Powers clause, dating from the post-1945 era, currently cancels cover if war breaks out between the US, UK, France, China, or Russia, a binary approach that fails to capture grey-zone conflicts, proxies, and cyber or drone warfare. Industry experts warn about enforceability of such rulings in US courts, while advocates push for clearer definitions as risk premiums climb—BIMCO has warned premiums could rise further. The NotPetya litigation in New Jersey serves as a jurisdictional cautionary tale.