Insurance: Business Interruption Coverage-COVID-19-Denial of Claim

Plaintiff appealed the district court’s dismissal of its complaint against defendant, plaintiff’s casualty insurer. Plaintiff filed suit alleging wrongful denial of business interruption coverage, after plaintiff temporarily restricted in-person services due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Where plaintiff’s business interruption did not result from a qualifying property loss or property damage, as the presence of virus did not satisfy the physicality requirement, defendant was entitled to deny coverage under the policy’s virus exclusion.

Judgment is affirmed.

Lindenwood Female College v. Zurich American Insurance Company (MLW No. 79530/Case No. 21-3738 – 5 pages) (U.S. Court of Appeals, 8th Circuit, Melloy, J.) Appealed from U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Missouri, Autrey, J. (Bradley Wilders, of Kansas City, MO, for appellant; Patrick Joseph Stueve, of Kansas City, MO, on the brief) (Parick Florian Hofer, of Washington, DC for appellee; Michael Anthony Scodro, of Chicago, IL, Timothy J. Wolf, of St. Lous, MO, Douglas Allen Smith, of Los Angeles, CA, Timothy A. Carroll, of Morristown, NJ, and Gabriella Richeimer, of Washington, DC, on the brief)