Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) “failed to finalise a cyber placement brokered by Lockton ahead of the incident” that forced a shutdown of its production lines, according to reports.
Because the insurance deal was not completed before the attack, JLR “appears to be uninsured directly for the attack,” three senior cyber insurance market sources told The Insurer. JLR declined to comment.
As a result, the carmaker is expected to absorb the full cost of the disruption — including business interruption, recovery and supply chain losses.
According to Reuters, the attack has already halted manufacturing at JLR’s UK plants through to October 1, putting pressure on suppliers and raising concerns about cascading effects across the automotive sector.
One idea to combat this impact that has been floated is that the UK government steps in to buy the component parts that the suppliers build, to keep them in business until JLR’s production lines in the West Midlands are up and running again.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, former Conservative mayor of the West Midlands, Andy Street, said the companies in JLR’s supply chain had been “very successful” and he supported offering them government-backed loans.
The attack has halted manufacturing at JLR’s UK plants through to October 1
“I would argue if you think of the total income that JLR and its supply chain put into the Exchequer, this is a good deal for the Exchequer,” he said.
If the government were to step in, it is believed to be the first time that a company received help because of a cyber-attack.
Co-op Hacking Games partnership
The Co-op meanwhile, revealed today that the cyber-attack on its business earlier in the year has cost the supermarket chain “at least £206m in lost revenues”.
Overall, the retailer reported a £75m underlying pre-tax loss in the six months to 5 July, compared to a £3m profit in the same period a year earlier.
The arrests of several teenagers in connection with the Co-op cyberattack have sharpened the retailer’s focus on the link between youth and cybercrime.
Chief executive Shirine Khoury-Haq said the incident underlined the need to tackle the problem at its roots: “Over the past three years, we’ve built a stronger and more resilient Co-op – one that’s better able to navigate the headwinds that all businesses are facing.
“When we experienced a significant cyber attack, that financial strength allowed us to respond as a member-owned organisation.”
“I’m very proud of how we reacted: we kept trading, prioritised colleagues and vulnerable communities, and launched a partnership with The Hacking Games to tackle youth disenfranchisement – the root of many cyber threats.”
“The cyber-attack highlighted many of our strengths. But more importantly, it also highlighted areas we need to focus on – particularly in our Food business.”
“We’ve already started on this journey, refining our member and customer proposition, making structural changes to our business, and setting our Co-op up for long-term success.”
