The nerve agent attack in Salisbury, England, purportedly perpetrated by the Russian government as revenge on a former spy, according to reports, raises some interesting points about insurance coverage and exclusions, according to a report from Pool Reinsurance Co. Ltd. Monday.

Although the attack was “the first offensive use of a nerve agent in Europe since the Second World War,” the resulting loss of foot traffic and commercial activity in the areas surrounding the attack’s location may shine light on coverage gaps, Pool Re says in its latest Terrorism Frequency Report issued Monday.

“There are certain eventualities that are invariably excluded by all commercial insurance policies, two examples of which are war and the use of CBRN [chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear],” said an analysis by Stephen Coates, chief underwriting officer, and Camilla Scrimgeour, analyst.

Local attractions and business have seen traffic fall off drastically or been closed altogether.

Salisbury Cathedral, the report said, saw foot traffic drop by 40% in the week immediately after the incident and a month after the attack, the visitor rate was still down 20% and income was down 24%.

Two restaurants where the Russian agent dined with his daughter, who was also exposed to the nerve agent, remained closed as of the writing of the report, the analysis said.

The unprecedented nature of the interruption to business in Salisbury raises some interesting issues for business interruption (BI) insurance policies,” the analysis said, adding “Traditional commercial property and business interruption policies do not offer such cover.”

Limited coverage for such CBRN events is available in the stand-alone terrorism market, the report said. “CBRN coverage is available within terrorism policies backed by Pool Re, and on a more limited basis in some other terrorism covers.”

The incident shines a light on a scenario always considered low probability that may warrant new attention.

“Since it seems possible that techniques, thought formerly to be restricted to nation states and deployed during a conflict, may be used by others in a more restricted and localized manner, it may be useful for insurers and reinsurers to consider if their historical perspectives on certain scenarios should be re-examined,” the report said.