The fires of the summer of 2026 had an unexpected consequence: pharmacies that did not burn down but had to close for several weeks were denied compensation for their loss of business. The Moniteur des pharmacies echoed this on September 15, relaying the FSPF’s warning about the underinsurance of a large part of the profession. The observation is correct. However, it deserves to be taken further, because the most costly gaps are not always to be found where one looks for them.
A CONTRACT THAT YOU SIGN ONCE AND NEVER READ AGAIN
The scenario is familiar to all pharmacists who have settled down: financing takes center stage, the wholesaler-distributor is chosen, and the insurance contract often arrives at the end of the process, sometimes offered by the bank, sometimes taken over from the previous provider. We check that the sum insured appears consistent, sign the contract, and the contract is filed in a folder.
Or an office has changed in ten years: dispensing robot, refrigerators filled with products costing several thousand euros each, telemedicine, an external distributor, expansion into the neighboring premises. The contract, however, hasn’t changed unless someone makes it change. It’s not a question of being well or ill insured in the absolute sense: it’s a question of the gap between what is written and what actually exists.
LOSS OF PROFIT: FOUR QUESTIONS BEFORE SAYING YOU ARE COVERED
Loss of income is the guarantee that keeps the pharmacy alive when it can no longer operate. It is also the one whose scope is most poorly understood. The refusals observed this summer were all based on the same point: the guarantee only triggered in the event of material damage suffered by the pharmacy itself. An order for closure by the authorities, a ban on access, a closed road, an evacuation of the neighborhood: none of these are material damage, therefore nothing is compensated.
Four points must be clearly stated in the specific conditions.
1. The generating fact
Does the contract only cover the consequences of guaranteed material damage, or also losses of business without direct damage? We are talking here about losses resulting from an inability to access, an administrative closure, a failure of an essential supplier or service provider, or a prolonged power outage. Most insurers offer these types of cover; they are almost never granted automatically, and their limits are often modest. It is also necessary to clarify the treatment of non-consequential intangible damages (DINC), that is, financial losses that do not result from any physical damage: this is typical of the summer of 2026, and it is also a concept found in the civil liability section, where it determines whether your workshop is covered for financial losses caused to a third party without physical damage.
2. The indemnified claim
Some contracts compensate for a loss of turnover, others for a loss of gross margin, and the difference is considerable for a pharmacy whose purchases account for the bulk of the figure. A contract written on gross margin, with fixed charges and additional operating costs (renting a temporary premises, overtime, communication with the patient base) properly factored in, is generally the fairest. A contract written on turnover may seem more generous but often comes with caps or franchise fees that reduce its scope. One must read the exact definition, not the title.
3. The duration of compensation
The standard compensation period is twelve months. It is presented as comfortable. It is not always comfortable: between the expertise, the urban planning dossier, the reconstruction deadlines, the ordering of a new automated system and the actual return of the patient base, a seriously damaged pharmacy can take eighteen to twenty-four months to regain its previous level of activity. A twelve-month period that ends when the pharmacy barely reopens, leaving the pharmacist to finance the recovery phase alone. Periods of eighteen or twenty-four months are negotiated, for a generally reasonable additional cost given the stakes involved.
4. The franchise
The operating loss allowance is expressed in days. Three days, five days, ten days: on a guarantee without direct damage, the allowance is sometimes so long that it strips the guarantee of its substance, making a one-week closure possible. Again, this is something that can be read and negotiated.
THE DECLARATED PERIMETER: WHERE THE SECRETS COMPLICATE THEMSELVES
The second major source of gaps lies in the failure to declare, or the inaccurate declaration of, claims. The Insurance Code is clear: an inaccurate declaration, even made in good faith, entitles the insurer to reduce the indemnity in proportion to the premium that should have been paid (the proportional principle of premium, article L113-9). An intentionally false declaration opens the way to the mere nullity of the contract (article L113-8). In both cases, the sanction applies at the time of the incident.
The most common points of fragility in a pharmacy:
- The robot or dispensing automaton. It must be included in the contract, at its replacement value new and not at its depreciated value deducted, with a breakdown machine extension for breakdowns and a loss of exploitation that lasts for the entire duration of the unavailability, breakdown included.
- Thermosensitive products. The goods ceiling in refrigerators is often set at a flat amount inherited from another era. It must be reassessed at the real value of the cold stock, taking into account seasonal peaks and the expensive treatments now common.
- The distributors and external boxes. A cash machine accessible from the street, a collection cabinet, a connected safe: these equipment are outside the strictly insured building. If they have not been declared as such, the theft or vandalism that hits them may be the pharmacist’s responsibility.
- The store and the exterior arrangements. Lighted signs, banners, store windows: their coverage is not systematic and the cost of replacing them is always surprising.
- The annexed or reserved territory. A storage room in another part of the building, a basement, an adjoining garage: if it is not listed in the risk addresses, it is not insured, and it also does not benefit from the protection measures required by the contract.
- The required preventive measures have been taken. Compliant alarm and in working order; electrical installation meets standards; documented maintenance of the refrigeration equipment: these are warranty conditions. Failure to comply with them is a classic and perfectly legal reason for rejection.
CYBER: IT IS NOT AN INFORMATION OPTION
The coverage of digital risks is often presented as an option to tick off in the multi-risk section for IT. This presentation is misleading for a pharmacy, for a simple reason: the pharmacist deals with health data, and health data, along with banking data, is the type of data whose compromise carries the heaviest responsibility for those who hold it.
The priority point to be checked is therefore not the replacement of the computer workstation, but the civil liability aspect relating to personal and confidential data: notification to patients and the CNIL, investigation costs, claims by the affected individuals, administrative sanctions when the law allows, defense in the event of a claim. A cyber option grafted onto a multiline insurance rarely covers this aspect satisfactorily, and it is almost always capped at amounts unrelated to the real risk.
Our position is clear: unless you have a shop with a truly low IT dependency, it is preferable to sign a comprehensive and separate cyber contract rather than an optional option. A dedicated contract provides what an optional option does not: continuous crisis assistance, security and crisis management experts mandated from the very first hour, handling of data recovery and business interruption related to the attack, and consistent caps.
However, insurance does not exempt from prevention, and cyber insurers are increasingly making it a requirement. The fundamentals expected in an office:
- Professional messaging hosted on the company’s domain; never a free public address for exchanges with patients, prescribers or paying agencies.
- Regular, tested backups, with at least one copy disconnected from the network.
- Multi-factor authentication (MFA) for sensitive access: email, pharmacy management software, remote access.
- A nominative access rights management system, with the immediate deletion of the accounts of the employees who have left.
- Updates applied immediately to the workstations, the server, and the network equipment.
- Regular awareness-raising of the team, phishing remaining the primary vector of intrusion.
LEGAL PROTECTION: A LEGAL APPEAL IS NOT LEGAL PROTECTION
The same logic applies to litigation. The multirisque insurance almost always includes a defense-recourse guarantee. It is useful, but its scope is limited: it is used to defend the pharmacy when it is involved in a claim covered by the contract, or to pursue legal action against the person responsible for damage covered by the contract. It does not cover disputes with a supplier, labor disputes with a preparer, disagreements with the lessor, or disputes regarding a health insurance inspection or an order decision.
These situations fall under an autonomous contract of legal protection, with consistent fee caps, free access to a choice of lawyer, and areas of intervention tailored to the practice of medicine. As with cyber, the option included with multi-risk insurance is almost always the least effective version available on the market.
CAN AN AI TOOL REPLACE PROFESSIONAL READING?
The FSPF announces for November an artificial intelligence tool designed to identify the gray areas in its members’ contracts. The initiative is in the right direction: anything that prompts a pharmacist to review their contract is welcome. However, it is necessary to measure its limits.
A reading tool identifies what is written and, at best, what is missing from a baseline. It does not know the actual value of the cold stock, the pharmacy’s dependence on its automated system, next year’s expansion project, or the financial health that will determine the duration of the loss of operating revenue. It does not negotiate an extension with an insurer, does not rebid the contract when the response is insufficient, and bears no liability for advice if it missed a point.
This is precisely the role of a professional intermediary: to dissect the existing contract for the pharmacist, to compare it with the reality of the pharmacy, to obtain from the existing insurer the missing clauses, and if the latter does not comply, to consult the market to obtain the appropriate coverage. This work involves taking responsibility, it is documented, and it is renewed with each evolution of the pharmacy. A tool can prepare the conversation; it does not replace it.
WHAT NEEDS TO BE REMEMBERED
- The loss of profit is assessed according to four criteria: the triggering event (with or without material damage, DINC), the amount (turnover or gross margin), the length of the compensation period (twelve months may be insufficient), and the deductible per day.
- Everything that exists in the shop must be included in the contract: the vending machine, the cold storage at its actual value, external equipment, signage, and annexes. An inaccurate declaration is charged at the time of the claim.
- Cyberspace first controls civil liability regarding personal and health data; a dedicated contract is preferable to an option, unless there is little computer dependency, and prevention is the prerequisite.
- A defense-appeal is not a legal protection: the day-to-day disputes of the pharmacy require an autonomous contract.
- Having a professional read and follow up on your contract, who confronts you with the reality of the dealership, negotiates the missing clauses, and, if necessary, resubmits the contract remains the safest protection.
Do you want to have your pharmacy contract reviewed? KRAFT Assurances assists pharmacists in auditing their insurance policies and aligning their contracts with the reality of their business operations.
Contact us at 03 52 56 48 40 or contact@kraft-assurances.fr.
Citing source: The Moniteur des pharmacies, «Workshop insurance: these flaws that can cost (very) dearly», September 15, 2026.
