Chubb, the underwriter behind insurance policies that covered National Rifle Association members sued over shootings, says it decided to end the coverage long before a teenager carrying a semi-automatic rifle killed 17 people at a south Florida high school.
The Zurich-based firm joins companies from First National Bank of Omaha to rental car businesses like Avis and Enterprise pulling away from the powerful gun-lobbying group, which is fighting tighter regulation after killings in Broward County, Fla., and shooting sprees in Texas and Las Vegas.
“Three months ago, Chubb provided notice of our intent to discontinue participation in the NRA Carry Guard insurance program under the terms of our contract,” the company said in a statement on Friday. The policies provided hundreds of thousands of dollars in liability coverage for civil suits in self-defense cases as well as reimbursement in criminal cases after an acquittal or dismissal.
Critics including advocacy groups Guns Down and Color of Change had criticized the policies as “murder insurance” skewed toward protecting white shooters, citing the case of George Zimmerman, the 28-year-old neighborhood watch volunteer acquitted in the death of an unarmed black teenager, Trayvon Martin, in Florida five years ago.
The NRA, which didn’t return a message seeking comment on Friday, has reiterated its support of gun rights amid the backlash after week’s killing spree at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Authorities said 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz, the expelled student arrested in the case, used a Colt AR-15 semi-automatic rifle that he had purchased legally.
In the days since, survivors and relatives of victims have campaigned vigorously to restrict sales of automatic weapons and improve safety at the nation’s schools. Questions have been raised about whether the age at which guns can be purchased legally should be raised to 21 and how Cruz, who had been flagged to authorities previously after threatening statements, passed a background check. The NRA has said it supports tighter measures to keep mentally ill people from buying guns.
President Trump, whose 2016 campaign was backed by the group, has suggested arming some well-trained school staffers to better protect students and backed a higher minimum-age requirement and more thorough background checks.
The chief executive nonetheless maintained his loyalty to the rifle association, whose CEO, Wayne LaPierre, denounced gun-control efforts writ large this week.
The movement’s supporters are fighting “to eliminate the Second Amendment,” the Constitutional provision that guarantees the right to bear arms, “and our firearms freedoms, so they can eradicate all individual freedoms,” he said at the Conservative Political Action Conference.
