By Seth Tarboro, EHD Select Producer
“What do Insurance and SPF-50 sunscreen have in common? They both provide a necessary layer of protection!” – Is something along the lines of how I planned to start this summer themed commercial insurance blog. Actually, that’s not half bad… a little corny, which means it’s right up my alley.
Do you remember the Neuralyzer from Men in Black? The flashy thing that wipes people’s memories. No? I guess it works pretty well then – haha – my kids would not be proud of me for that one. In any case, sit still while I press this button and next year when I use the sunscreen line to open my summer blog, it’ll feel like the first time you’ve read it.
In all seriousness, the World Cup started recently (Go USMNT!) and has made me quite enthused about people from different nations coming together on the world stage. So, what better time to take a look at how business sectors and the global insurance that protects them compare nation to nation.
India: Tech Start-Up Surge
Over the past three decades, India has come to be known as the “Silicon Valley of Asia”. Cities like Bangalore and Hyderabad have been the birthplace of tech start-ups in the fintech space as well as e-commerce and AI. Bangalore alone is responsible for thousands of these types of businesses, some of which are valued at over a billion dollars. It being one of the top five largest tech hubs in the world has made it breeding ground for small start-ups to launch and scale rapidly.
In August of 2023, India enacted the Digital Personal Data Protection Act to govern how organizations process personal data for individuals. The cyber insurance market was valued at $725 million in 2025 and is expected to grow to over $8 billion by 2034. An estimated 25% of the new cyber insurance purchases are start-ups, as this protection has proven to be a necessary part of their growth. They face risks such as intellectual property disputes and breaches of customer data. Tech E&O coverage has become especially necessary as a small error in software could lead to delays or crashes for clients and huge financial costs for the insured.
Germany: The Land of Engineers
German manufacturing accounted for about 18% of the nation’s GDP in 2024. That figure is nearly double the percentage that manufacturing makes up for the GDP of the U.S. We’re not just talking about household name giants like Volkswagen or BMW, but also smaller sized enterprises such as Rohleder GmbH, a family-owned textile manufacturer with about 170 employees, whose products are used by renowned furniture manufacturers, luxury transportation companies and restaurants around the world.
In the 1980s a landmark case unfolded involving HEWI, a German manufacturer of nylon hardware and architectural components. They manufactured structural nylon casement window handles and fittings that were installed in large public and commercial buildings. Over time the materials used degraded causing core mechanisms to become defective under stress. This led to financial pressure on HEWI to compensate for systemic retrofitting and replacement across multiple buildings.
It also had a major impact on the German Product Liability Act (ProdHaftG) enacted in 1989 which would install new regulation for how long a company remains liable after a product leaves the factory gate. Even though these German companies specialize in precise design, product liability coverage is a crucial component to their success as a single defect could lead to global recall and legal costs.
Japan: Your Favorite Destination’s Favorite Destination
Japan is iconic for its tourism and hospitality. Attracting millions of travelers to luxury hotels and idyllic ryokans each year. In 2025 alone, Japan welcomed 42.7 million international visitors, a 15.8% increase from the previous year. The total tourism revenue that year was about 9.4 trillion yen, or approximately 63 billion dollars, confirming its place as an integral piece of Japan’s GDP. Such reliance on hospitality, however, does create a vulnerability behind every world-class stay. A sudden disruption in consistent tourism could result in severe economic instability.
These positive numbers over the past five years stand as a significant rebound after the pandemic gutted tourism around the world, including Japan in 2020 and 2021. The pandemic triggered massive shifts in how hotels looked to manage their insurance programs. While business interruption coverage generally has exclusions for viruses or pandemics, the situation still taught many beneficial lessons.
Hotels learned that a shutdown doesn’t just happen because of damage to their own building, but that their bottom line may be affected by the circumstances around them. For instance, if a primary airport closes or a nearby convention center suffers damage to their building or a regional power grid fails, the hotel may lose revenue despite having suffered no direct losses themselves. They began shifting or increasing limits for Contingent Business Interruption to ensure they get paid if a loss is suffered by key external demand ecosystems or critical local infrastructure, causing a pause in the flow of tourists.
They also adjusted their Period of Indemnity. In the past, they would only seek coverage for lost revenue while the current crisis was ongoing. The pandemic showed them that consumer reluctance can linger for some time after the crisis officially “ends”. They were able to purchase extensions on these periods to ensure they receive payouts up to 90 days after reopening.
United States: “The Franchise”
Last but, certainly not least, the USA. You could say I saved the best for last. As there’s a decent chance, you’re reading this after the World Cup Finals have already happened… Can you believe we just won the World Cup?! I won’t say I deserve credit for manifesting it here, but I also won’t turn away any fruit baskets. I suppose there’s a chance we didn’t win and maybe I jinxed it, in which case… I’m just a guy writing an insurance blog, let’s not play the blame game.
The U.S. is home to over 800,000 franchise establishments that generate over 900 billion dollars annually. Safe to say the franchise game is a major pillar of the U.S. economy. In fact, the franchise industry supports about 8.8 million direct jobs or roughly 9% of private-sector employment. Franchises cover a diverse spectrum of services from food to fitness and because of that they draw a wide range of employees, making Employment Practices Liability coverage absolutely necessary.
McDonald’s may be the most well know franchise in the U.S., if not the world. While they may not be crippled by an employment dispute, that could be an entirely different story for the franchise owner. In January of 2026 a settlement took place between one set of McDonald’s franchise owners in Oregon and their employees all the way back to 2014. The franchise failed to compensate its employees for short meal breaks during their shifts which violated Oregon employment protections. This led to a $3.55 million dollar settlement. While the owners did not admit to wrongdoing, they did agree to the settlement which was covered under their Employment Practices Liability coverage, allowing them to avoid paying this amount out of pocket and protecting them from potentially business-crippling wage-and-hour claims.
Conclusion
We live in a diverse world with a wide array of potential for business success. Along with that potential for success comes an even wider array of possible risks and pitfalls. The most obviously glaring risks for a manufacturer may be much less of a worry for a hotel or bed and breakfast. That’s why it’s critical to work with insurance experts you trust who will build a program to suit your specific needs.
Let me know if you learned something from this piece. Let me know if you laughed. Most importantly, go scream GOOOAL at the top of your lungs!
