“Under the clear language of the policy itself, it’s the order of a governmental authority, which prohibits access to the premises, which triggers the coverage. Because there were several different executive orders which were issued, in our view, each order triggered coverage under the policy,” plaintiffs attorney Michael Canning said.
A federal judge in Newark, New Jersey, ruled that the COVID-19 pandemic was a single event for purposes of determining a policyholder’s payout under communicable disease business income insurance coverage.
U.S. District Judge Jamel Semper rejected claims by the policyholder, the nonprofit Count Basie Theater in Red Bank, New Jersey, that a series of executive orders from New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy shutting down entertainment facilities during the pandemic each counted as a separate event, triggering Zurich American Insurance Co.’s coverage of $100,000 per occurrence.
