Wagner Shoes among businesses denied COVID-19 coverage nationwide
Attorney
On
"Small businesses are our nation's largest employers," said Glover, of
Glover is representing the business along with
"Small businesses are our nation's largest employers," he said. "Many purchased business interruption insurance coverage for times just like this. They are being denied the protection they purchased. We are glad to be on their side in this fight."
The Wagner company has operated in
Across the country, companies are learning their property insurance policies don't apply to mandated closures caused by COVID-19.
In many instances, claims are rejected because the policies include a specific exclusion for losses due to "virus or bacteria," a legacy of the SARS outbreak of the early 2000s. Insurance company adjusters are also citing a more nuanced explanation, namely, that the shuttering of businesses due to coronavirus was not related to nor did it cause actual property damage, as in the case of a fire or hurricane.
The insurance industry has been quick to point out in online postings and in letters to legislators that insurance companies would be financially crushed by payouts to businesses for their coronavirus-related losses if forced to change their policies retroactively, as some lawmakers have advocated.
Bottom line, says
"The basis for insurance is that everyone pays a little bit to compensate for the catastrophic losses that hit the few," he said. "But with a pandemic, everyone is having catastrophic losses at the same time. It would be like the industry covering auto accidents all happened at the same time."
On its website, the
Still, the ongoing debate over business interruption coverage is not likely to be quelled anytime soon. Multiple lawsuits have been filed by restaurateurs in
In a pre-emptive move last month,
He filed the suit when he began hearing that Keller's insurance carrier, The
Houghtaling rejects the insurance industry's stance that the government orders to effectively shutter businesses had nothing to do with concerns about property damage to businesses. He points to the verbiage of various orders, including
"The insurance companies don't want to talk about the danger coronavirus poses to property because then they would owe for the entire time the businesses are shut down," Houghtaling said. "They're crying, poor us, don't let us go bankrupt, we only have
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