Jersey Shore Restaurant Owners Not Covered for COVID-19 Losses, Judge Rules

CAMDEN, N.J. — A federal judge has granted Twin City Fire Insurance Co.’s motion for judgment on the pleadings in a COVID-19 coverage action filed by the owners of three New Jersey shore restaurants, ruling that the policies’ virus exclusion apply to their losses.

In an Aug. 12 order, Chief Judge Freda L. Wolfson of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey rejected plaintiffs’ argument that the exclusion does not apply because the coverage applies to “conditions of the premises, not to protecting against a pandemic.” The judge found plaintiffs’ position “has no textual support in the …