COVID-19 and Insurance Coverage: “Physical Damage” By a Covered Peril
As the respiratory illness known as coronavirus disease 2019 (“COVID-19”) spreads across the globe, so too are its major impacts on businesses, financial markets, and international trade and commerce. Business are confronting a range of losses related to the World Health Organization-declared pandemic and will look to insurance to cover those losses. While insurers’ coverage decisions will be fact-specific and based on the terms and conditions of the relevant policy, whether there has been physical damage caused by a covered peril is likely to be at the forefront of early disputes.