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Newton company that owns hundreds of hotels sues insurers over Covid-19 losses; claims virus causes physical damage to indoor surfaces
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Comments
How many lawyers does it take
to file a frivolous claim?
Six. The answer is six.
I'm filing a claim on my homeowner's policy
for Solar Wind damage.
That's a hell of a claim
And I admire whoever drafted it.
This is The Aristocrats joke
Of COVID claims
This claim would be stronger ...
... were there any evidence that Covid-19 can be transmitted via surfaces.
LOL @ "phyiscal damage"
That's not how that works.
If anyone sneezes in my house, I will be having them arrested for wanton destruction of my property from now on.
wow...
I think it is beautiful that fully licensed attorneys can draft up filings just as absurd as sovereign citizens. It shows that quackery is not a lost art, even among those who should absolutely know better.
Should have bought that pandemic insurance
It was possible to get a pandemic rider on insurance policies - and people did do this knowing it was an eventuality, if not an inevitability.
It wasn't even expensive - and boy did it pay off for those who sought it out!
The rest? Well, the fact that it was a specific rider says that it isn't covered under even the most imaginative of claims.
Wimbledon paid close to two
Wimbledon paid close to two million dollars a year for theirs, starting after the 2003 SARS epidemic. It paid off in 2020, to the tune of about $142 million, so it turned out to be a good investment, but I wouldn't say "not even expensive."
The thing to remember is that, because insurance companies are in business to make a profit, they set premiums high enough that on average, each policy-holder loses money. That "on average" is why it's often worth having insurance, of course, but doesn't tell us whether it was worth it for any given company to buy pandemic insurance starting in 2003, or whether it would be worth it at 2022 rates.
Still inexpensive
Insurance rates are based on exposure - sales/revenue/event count/etc. My educated guess is $2M was a good rate for an event the size of Wimbledon. They certainly won't get it for that price again.
If the air in their hotels
If the air in their hotels was stationary enough to be "physical property", they'd have bigger problems than 180 positive cases. They'd have customers and employees dead unless they had a LOT of plants in every room to process O2 and CO2.
Dumb, but insurance companies
Dumb, but insurance companies are rent-seeking extortionists and deserve to lose every penny they immorally and unlawfully earn, so best of luck to the dumb plaintiffs.
By this "logic"...
...wouldn't the properties be permanently contaminated and uninhabitable? Great marketing, folks:. "Welcome to the Hotel Chernobyl"
Well, there's a half-life involved
just like with radiation...
If they win this suit
I'm never staying at the Royal Sonesta again until they rebuild and re-furnish it. I'll miss those free bike rentals. :(
Astounding how many legal scholars on here.
It's astounding how many law professors and legal scholars are on here. With your level of expertise, shouldn't y'all be busy billing $1,500 per hour instead of posting on UHub?