Suffered business losses due to COVID-19?
Business losses due to COVID-19 may be covered under a business’s insurance policy, even if the insurer denies the claim.
We are in the process of reviewing hundreds of insurance policies on behalf of businesses – large and small. We think many policies cover coronavirus-related losses, even when the insurance company says otherwise.
Insurance companies have every incentive to make it hard for you to recover your business losses. But we want to help. Contact us and we can review your policy for free.
Does Your Policy Cover coronavirus losses? Insurance claim wrongfully denied?
No Cost Policy Review. Contact us now
We are honored to represent hundreds of businesses in challenging unfair and blanket denials by their insurance companies during the COVID-19 crisis. Our clients include:
On February 11, 2021, we filed a lawsuit against Sequoia Insurance Company on behalf of Pacific Lodging Group, which owns Bodega Coast Inn & Suites and is led by Tarun S. Patel, a prominent hotelier and former chairman of the Asian American Hotel Owners Association.
“Across the industry, resorts, hotel franchises, and particularly independent family-owned hotels have been badly hurt by the ripple effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, despite an unflagging dedication to keeping patrons and employees safe and healthy,” said Tarun S. Patel, a partner in Pacific Lodging Group. “We consistently paid a costly premium for comprehensive insurance from Sequoia for years. Now we need Sequoia to step up and fulfill their obligation so that we can recover.”
On July 7, 2020, we filed a lawsuit against AMCO Insurance Company on behalf of Chez Panisse, the Bay Area-based restaurant founded by Alice Waters that pioneered a national movement around sustainable, organic, farm-to-table cuisine.
“The servers, cooks, farmers, ranchers and other hard-working people in the Chez Panisse family are seeing their livelihoods in jeopardy because AMCO has declined to live up to its responsibilities as our insurer,” said Alice Waters, chef, author, food activist, and owner of Chez Panisse Restaurant.
On July 22, 2020, we filed a class action lawsuit against Sentinel Insurance Company on behalf of Oaklandish, beloved apparel company and vital member of Oakland’s economy and culture.
“Oaklandish’s deep-rooted love for Oakland is more than printing pride-evoking designs on products; it’s also our commitments to creating quality jobs for locals, celebrating our city’s rich diversity, and giving back to the people and places that maintain our trailblazer spirit. Oaklandish needs Sentinel Insurance Company to fulfill its commitments for our company to once again flourish alongside the city we love,” says Angela Tsay, CEO and Director of Oaklandish.
On May 11, 2020, we filed a class action lawsuit against Travelers Insurance Company on behalf of Mudpie, a family-owned children’s clothing boutique in San Francisco.
Mudpie owner Sarah Perliss says the store, her “livelihood, creative outlet, and passion,” has had to quickly pivot to online and curbside sales. “It’s impacted us drastically,” Sarah says. “The sales are nothing like what our daily sales were. I would just like to see the insurance company step up and do what’s right.”
Other active business interruption insurance lawsuits and investigations include:
Our COVID-19 Business Interruption Insurance Coverage Task Force has been quoted and featured in news outlets across the country.
“Many small, culturally important businesses are looking to insurance coverage as a lifeline. But after responsibly following shutdown orders, they’re being denied coverage. It’s really a widespread problem tearing at the fabric of our communities.”
— Andre Mura, attorney on our COVID-19 Business Interruption Insurance Coverage Task Force
That is a complicated question. According to Locke Lord LLP, a law firm that defends insurance companies, a court is more likely to find that some policies rather than others cover coronavirus because some policies contain certain policy exclusions, while others do not. For example, if a policy covers building closures due to an order by a “civil authority,” this may be a better fit for claiming coverage if you were forced to close your property due to a shelter-in-place order.
However, some policies also contain a physical loss requirement, which may be more difficult to navigate. With these types of policies, you may have to prove that you suffered a physical loss due to COVID-19.
The bottom line is that every policy is different and should be evaluated as such. If you believe you may have may be entitled to covered due to your recent business losses, get a free consultation from an insurance lawyer. You may have a claim.
Many officials are now urging insurance companies to take business interruption claims more seriously. According to the Insurance Journal, California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara issued a notice requiring insurance companies to fairly investigate all business interruption claims resulting from COVID-19 losses. The Journal quotes the commissioner in saying,
I want to be absolutely clear that insurance companies need to fairly investigate all business interruption claims as they would during any disaster… Policyholders deserve all the services, coverage, and benefits they are due under their policy.
The Insurance Journal also reports that President Trump made a statement regarding Business Interruption Insurance. According to the article, the President claimed that, unless the insurance policy excludes pandemics, the insurer should pay. The Journal further quotes the President in saying,
You have people that have never asked for business-interruption insurance and they have been paying a lot of money for a lot of years for the privilege of having it and then when they finally need it, the insurance company says ‘We’re not going to give it’ … We can’t let that happen.
When small businesses purchase business interruption insurance, it is usually intended to cover the risk of a wide variety of losses:
Businesses that expected they were taking the responsible step by securing business interruption coverage are now finding themselves unfairly burdened with damages and costs resulting from insurance company’s failure to cover these losses resulting from COVID-19.
According to the Business Interruption Insurance Notice from Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, there are a few primary rules and procedures that insurers must follow when a business wants to claim on its business interruption insurance.
Where the denial of a first party claim is based on a specific statute, applicable law or policy provision, condition, or exclusion, the written denial must include reference to and provide an explanation of the application of the statute, applicable law, or policy provision, condition, or exclusion to the claim.
In addition to these outlined steps, the Commissioner’s Notice explains that no insurer, agent, or representative may dissuade policyholders from filing a notice of claim, or refuse to open an investigation on claims under Business Interruption Insurance. If you believe your insurer did not conduct a fair investigation into your claim stemming from COVID-19, you may have legal recourse.
If your business interruption claim is denied, there are a few immediate steps you should take:
Our lawyers are here to help. Get a free consultation today to learn more.
Insurance Coverage Denied Due to COVID-19?
Example: COVID-19 Business Losses
Business interruption insurance is supposed to cover lost business income when a business must suspend operations. Due to the global coronavirus pandemic, many small businesses have had to shut down. If one of these businesses paid for business interruption insurance, they can file a claim for their lost business income. The insurance provider has every incentive to deny the claim. Insurance executives have claimed that they will go bankrupt if they need to pay for COVID-19 losses. But businesses with denied claims can seek legal representation and file a lawsuit to force the insurer to pay. In our legal system, judges get to decide what is covered under an insurance policy; the insurance company does not get the final say.
Unfortunately, many insurance companies won’t even consider approving a claim until a policyholder seeks legal representation or files a lawsuit. Insurance companies may want you to think the issue is cut and dried, but the truth is, the legal landscape for this type of coverage is evolving right now.
Depending on the specific wording of your policy, there are several different ways you might be covered for pandemic-related losses, even if viruses aren’t specifically mentioned and even if your policy requires proof of a physical loss.
For example, some courts have found that loss of the ability to use your property can count as physical loss. Also, some courts have found that in some policies, the clause for covering losses from government-mandated closures (e.g. from civil authority orders) does not require physical damage to the property.
The bottom line is, each specific policy and situation is different. If you want to do all you can to get coverage, it’s worth having an attorney take a closer look.
Some policies have wording that excludes loss from certain reasons (sometimes referred to as “perils.”) For example, some policies say they don’t cover losses from:
However, even if your policy contains one or more of these exclusions, you may still be covered for your losses from COVID-19. In insurance law, there’s a principle called the reasonable expectations doctrine. This principle says that it’s not just the text of the contract that matters, but also the reasonable expectations of the policy holder. So if there is some ambiguity in the policy, some courts use this principle to rule in favor of more coverage rather than less.
Some policies cover closures due to civil authority orders. Many places in the U.S. are under a shelter-in-place order due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and there’s a strong argument that this counts as a closure due to civil authority. So even if your policy excludes virus coverage, your coronavirus losses might still be recoverable because your loss is arguably due to a government order closing all non-essential businesses, rather than due to the virus itself.
Generally speaking, yes. Business interruption insurance is intended to help replace lost income in the event of a disaster. Most of these policies cover different kinds of operating expenses, including payroll and wages.
A new federal law, the CARES Act, also created a loan program called PPP, the Paycheck Protection Program. Loans from PPP can be fully forgiven if certain conditions are met, including if at least 75% of the funds are used to cover employee payroll.
Over the past 35 years, our insurance team has won over $50 million in coverage for our business and individual clients. Lesser Law Group founder Don Lesser’s trial victories include multi-million dollar commercial leasing dispute in San Francisco in which Mr. Lesser and co-counsel, representing a prominent San Francisco restaurant, prevailed on all claims, obtained an alternative award of terminating sanctions against the opponent, and won a $1.8 million attorney’s fees award upheld on appeal.
“When insurance issues come up, the Lesser Law Group is my first and only call. Their deep understanding of the issues and knowledge of insurance law ensures that they always provide efficient, useful and timely guidance.”
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A founding partner at Gibbs Law Group, Eric has negotiated groundbreaking settlements that resulted in meaningful reforms to unlawful business practices. He was recently recognized as California Lawyer Attorney of the Year and was named to the Top Plaintiff Lawyers in California for 2019.
Andre represents plaintiffs in high-stakes complex litigation and appeals in state and federal courts throughout the country. He has authored briefs filed in the U.S. Supreme Court and received the California Lawyer Attorney of the Year Award in 2019.
Amy Zeman represents clients in a wide variety of complex litigation, with experience working closely with class representatives and consumer contacts. She uses her prior career experience as an accounting/ compliance manager in the financial services sector to identify and investigate fraud claims.
Don LesserAs Managing Partner of The Lesser Law Group, Don has represented hundreds of policyholders, agents and brokers and insurers for over 35 years concerning a wide range of insurance products and coverage issues, including claims disputes. He has obtained over $50 million in insurance coverage for his clients and brings an uncommon depth and breadth of experience in insurance law.
Andrew FriedmanAndrew is a Partner at Cohen Milstein and the Co-Chair of the firm’s award-winning Consumer Protection practice group. Mr. Friedman is a nationally recognized leader in the area of complex, multi-state lawsuits against major insurers, credit card companies, and other manufacturers and service providers.
Geoffrey GraberGeoffrey leads Cohen Milstein’s Business Interruption Insurance team. As a Partner and a member of the Consumer Protection practice group, he specializes in complex litigation involving false advertising, fraud, and other forms of unfair business practices at the hands of insurance companies, banks, health care companies, and others.
Victoria is a Partner at Cohen Milstein and Co-Chair of the firm’s Public Client practice. She represents clients in civil law enforcement investigations and litigation involving consumer protection, fraud, and other areas of enforcement.
Eric A. KafkaEric is a member of Cohen Milstein’s Consumer Protection practice. He also serves on Public Justice’s Class Action Preservation Committee.
Karina G. PuttievaKarina is a member of Cohen Milstein’s Consumer Protection practice and focuses on litigating class actions on behalf of consumers who have been harmed by large corporations.
We have assembled a coalition of two prominent law firms – Gibbs Law Group and Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll – with expertise in successfully litigating insurance fraud claims and other complex litigation. Spanning from the east to west coast, our firms have earned numerous awards for our innovative strategies and relentless efforts to advance and protect plaintiffs’ rights in complex cases, class actions and individual litigation.
Our clients benefit from our size and resources. Our attorneys have litigated against some of the largest corporations in the world, and we have recovered billions of dollars on our clients’ behalf. Together, our team is committed to going above and beyond for our clients as we strive to protect their rights.
Gibbs Law Group is a California-based law firm committed to protecting the rights of clients nationwide who have been harmed by corporate misconduct. We represent small businesses, individuals, whistleblowers, and employees across the U.S. against the world’s largest corporations. Our award-winning lawyers have achieved landmark recoveries and over a billion dollars for our clients in high-stakes complex lawsuits and individual cases involving consumer protection, data breach, digital privacy, and federal and California employment lawsuits. Our attorneys have received numerous honors for their work, including:
Cohen Milstein’s award-winning Consumer Protection practice is at the forefront of representing individuals, retailers, restaurants, and other small businesses in insurance fraud and coverage litigation, having litigated individual and class action lawsuits against many of the leading health, life, and property and casualty insurance companies before state and federal courts across the United States.
We have received numerous accolades for our work in consumer law:
The Lesser Law Group is committed to helping our clients recover the policy benefits for which they’ve paid premiums, often for many years. Since 1999, we’ve obtained over $50 million in coverage for our business and individual insurance clients. Our successes included recoveries under general liability, directors and officers, errors and omissions, homeowners, and other types of insurance policies involving claims for construction defects, corporate shareholder disputes and securities class actions, legal and medical malpractice, property losses and business interruption claims. We have an uncommon practical understanding of the insurance industry based on having trained its personnel, written insurance policies, drafted procedures for claims handling, underwriting, marketing and sales, and helped assure compliance with insurance laws and regulations.
Our founder Don Lesser is recognized by his peers for his outstanding knowledge of insurance law and has received the following awards: