Southern District Denies Insured’s Request for Preliminary Injunction Seeking Payment of COVID-19 Related Loss

Across the nation, small businesses have filed insurance claims seeking coverage for lost income incurred as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to news reports, and judging from the plethora of lawsuits filed, insurance companies are for the most part denying these claims for business interruption loss. In some instances, insurance companies are relying on virus or pandemic exclusions to support disclaimers. But the central issue in dispute in the vast majority of these cases is whether or not the insured can demonstrate that the business interruption loss resulted from physical loss or damage to property. In this article, partner Howard Epstein and special counsel Theodore Keyes discuss a recent ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York addressing an insured’s request for a preliminary injunction seeking payment of business interruption loss related to the COVID-19 pandemic.