Insurers Contest DAE Claim over Aircraft Stranded in Russia

Lloyd’s of London, AIG, Chubb, Swiss Re, and seven other insurers contend that they are not obligated to pay out USD 875 million to aircraft leasing firm Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE) for aircraft stuck in Russia because the insurance policies in question “have not yet been triggered by any sanctions resulting from the war in Ukraine”, according to Law360 reporting of the insurers’ stance.

In November 2022, DAE filed a complaint with the High Court of Justice in London against 11 insurers The claim followed DAE reporting in its first half 2022 financial results that it wrote off USD 576.5 million due to “loss of control of 19 aircraft that are currently in Russia which were previously leased to airlines based in Russia. In compliance with applicable sanctions, DAE terminated the leasing of these aircraft.”

In addition to the four aforementioned insurers, DAE’s claim also names Fidelis Insurance Ireland, HDI Global Speciality, Abu Dhabi National Insurance Co., Great Lakes Insurance, Global Aerospace Underwriting Managers, Starr Europe Insurance, and AXIS Speciality Europe.

DAE’s claim is one among several of cases brought against dozens of insurance companies and financial institutions by lessors of aircraft remaining in Russia following imposition of sanctions against Russia after its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. In March 2022, a subsidiary of AerCap filed a suit against UniCredit claiming that the bank is in breach of its LC obligations supporting aircraft leasing payments (April 2022 DCW 6).