N.Y. Casino Says COVID-19 Losses Covered Under Affiliated FM Policy

UTICA, N.Y. — The owner of the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe's Akwesasne Mohawk Casino and Resort in upstate New York has moved for summary judgment in a COVID-19 coverage action against Affiliated FM Insurance Co., arguing that the policy’s “contamination” exclusion does not apply.

In a Nov. 6 motion filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York Mohawk Gaming Enterprises LLC contends that the policy language confirms that COVID-19 is a covered “communicable disease” rather than a “contamination.”

“Indeed, the contamination exclusion does not clearly and distinctly say that it applies to covered communicable diseases …