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.
