Nancy Guthrie abduction puts focus on 'kidnap and ransom' insurance

The high-profile abduction of Nancy Guthrie is focusing new attention on a little-known, but quickly growing, segment of the insurance industry known as "kidnap and ransom" in which underwriters cover clients at risk from criminals at home and abroad.

While "K&R" insurance has traditionally been seen the domain of business executives whose travels take them to hot spots across the globe where abduction risk is high, the Guthrie case shows that even within the relatively safe United States, anyone can be subjected to kidnapping or extortion, industry leaders told UPI.

As of Monday, the fate of Nancy Guthrie remained unknown. The 84-year-old mother of Today show host Savannah Guthrie has been missing from her home in Tucson since Jan. 31. Police were notified after she failed to show up to watch a live stream of a church service at a friend's house.

Her family has been cleared in her disappearance and the case is still being treated as a kidnapping. The FBI describes the prime suspect as a male between 5 feet, 9 inches and 5 feet, 10 inches in height with a medium build and carrying a 24-liter black Ozark Trail Hiker Pack.

An unknown person's DNA was recovered at the crime scene, authorities said.

Meanwhile, reports have indicated the Guthrie family received a ransom demand of millions of dollars to be paid in cryptocurrency.

As the search has dragged on for weeks without any substantial breaks in the case, the costs to the Guthrie family are likely mounting quickly, even excluding the potential payout of a multimillion-dollar ransom.

This has led to speculation over whether Savannah Guthrie -- who has a reported net worth of $50 million -- owns a kidnap and ransom insurance policy covering herself and family members.

But, if she is like the vast majority of high-net worth Americans such as top business executives, media figures, politicians, athletes and celebrities, it's probable she does not have a K&R policy.

This is because kidnappings-for-ransom have always been rare in the United States and, as a result, the worldwide market for such policies has remained relatively small at an estimated at $2 billion in 2025.

But that figure is expected to nearly double by 2033 as buyers' perceptions of the threat levels evolve.

"Glaring gap"

The Nancy Guthrie case, as well as a recent rash of kidnappings targeting holders of large amounts of cryptocurrency, is shining a light on what some have described as a "glaring gap" in the security measures typically taken by wealthy families, media personalities and others.

Insurers don't want to talk about the cost of K&R policy premiums. However, according to independent estimates, basic policies can cost as little as $500 per year, but quickly rise in price as coverage expands and risks increase.

If, for instance, the policyholder is planning to travel to kidnapping "hotspots" such as Mexico, the cost will increase. Insurance for high-profile CEOs, regardless of where they travel, can run $10,000 or more per year, industry estimates indicate.

One of the world's largest providers of K&R insurance is the French company AXA and its specialized division for complex risks, AXA XL. Denise Balan, the firm's senior vice president and head of U.S. security risks, told UPI the need for these policies is evolving beyond business people traveling into risky global hotspots, although that remains a core customer base.

"You'd be surprised how many entities and individuals actually do carry this insurance, because it is a 'duty of care' product," she said, meaning it is provided by businesses as part of their legal duty to protect their employees.

"So, most companies that have a significant number of employees who either travel internationally or have CEOs or board members who have concerns about threats to their physical safety or extortion, they do tend to carry this insurance."

There are basically two elements to a typical K&R policy, Balan explained, including the obvious benefit: reimbursement of expenses and costs up to and including the ransom payment.

"But the more important aspect of the policy that you get is the service," she said. "And that's in the form of a security consultant. I'm sure you've heard a number of different security consultants who have been interviewed recently about the Savannah Guthrie case. Each insurance company that offers kidnap-for-ransom policies also offers a security service."

The cost of the consultants, usually drawn from a small pool of well-known providers such as London-based S-RM Intelligence and Control Risks Group, is entirely absorbed by the insurer and doesn't erode the policy limit -- rather, it is in addition to the limit.

"It is a wonderful service that will give you not only response in a crisis, but will also give you preventative assistance," Balan said. "It's useful if a company wants to set up a crisis management plan or to do an exercise so they'd know how to react if, for instance, they get a call on a Sunday night from someone who says one of their products is going to be tampered with unless they get a million dollars."

The provided security consultant can offer expert advice on "everything from how to speak to a kidnapper to how much ransom might be an appropriate amount to pay. They might know, for instance, that the going rate for kidnapping in Mexico is $2,500, and they can help with the negotiation, although they never speak directly to the kidnapper."

One reason that K&R policies are generally little-known is that they're highly confidential in nature and the potential for their abuse is high.

"You can't be out there talking about how you have an insurance policy that pays in the event of a kidnap because there's just so much potential for fraud," Balan said. "So, it's a very under-the-radar product that's been around since probably the early 1920s."

Another indication that threats are expanding beyond the traditional business travel sector is evident with a new phenomenon dubbed "crypto-kidnapping," in which organized gangs utilize leaked data to locate and target high-net-worth cryptocurrency holders.

The latest such incident came Feb. 12 outside of Paris when masked assailants targeted Binance France CEO David Prinçay in a failed home invasion and kidnapping attempt -- an attack that has put the entire cryptocurrency industry on high alert.

Matthew Humphries, head of crisis management at Lockton Cos., the world's largest privately held independent insurance broker, said such incidents show the universe of who should have K&R policies is expanding.

"Kidnap and ransom insurance is available for people and organizations whose profile or operations are exposed to heightened security risks, whether abroad or closer to home," he told UPI.

"There's a perception that kidnapping only happens in places with obvious political or security tensions, but the risk is far broader. We've seen kidnapping cases emerge in places few would expect, including some high‑profile incidents targeting people in the crypto sector in the U.S., France and Canada."

Payment for expert security teams covered

Estimates indicate as many as 25,000 kidnappings occur each year worldwide, according to another leader in the industry, the U.S.-based Travelers Cos., which warns in its literature, "If you still think it could never happen, consider this: Coercive threats to you and your business can take many forms."

The company cites two real-life examples.

In one, the president of a company was kidnapped in his parking lot and held for five days until a ransom was paid. Costs incurred included $650,000 for the ransom, $2,000 per day for an independent negotiator, $500 per day for recording equipment used to obtain the man's release, and $200 per day for extra security guards hired to protect his family.

In the other case, a physician's wife was attending a conference. The physician received a call that his wife had been kidnapped and that he had two hours to wire a ransom payment. He wired the funds, but realized later that his wife was never kidnapped or in any danger -- and all the while the expenses, such as the ransom payment and costs for a security team, quickly added up.

What's essential in any kidnapping scenario is the presence of experts to advise those close to the victims, which is perhaps the most important benefit of a K&R policy, said Tracey Santor, assistant vice president for financial institutions at Travelers.

Much like AXA AL's Balan, she emphasized the policies usually come with a crisis management team to be made available to victims' families and paid for by the carrier.

"The firm usually consists of former law enforcement officers from a number of agencies, such as the FBI, DEA and CIA, who can often determine if a kidnapping is from a specific group and what past behavior and demands have been," she told UPI. "The crisis team may also work with local authorities on the safety and return of the kidnap victim."

Travelers only issues commercial K&R policies for businesses rather than personal policies for individuals, for whom they recommend another U.S. provider working with the Travelers Syndicate 5000 in London.

Asked whether heavily publicized cases such as the abduction of Nancy Guthrie can drive up demand for K&R insurance, Santor responded, "Any high-profile story in the news has the ability to influence new buyers to look to purchase coverage related to the incident."