N.Y. Appeals Court Upholds Denial of Summary Judgment to Insurer in Sandy-Damaged Restaurant Case

NEW YORK — A New York appellate court has upheld denial of an insurer’s motion for summary judgment in a Superstorm Sandy coverage action, finding the evidence did not conclusively establish that an insured restaurant’s losses fell within the policy’s water/flood exclusion.

In a Feb. 21 order, the New York Appellate Division, 1st Department, explained that an engineering report submitted by the insurer contained no findings that attributed the restaurant’s damages to flood inundation or any other cause of loss.

Plaintiff Pastabar Café Corp. sustained damage when Superstorm Sandy hit New York in October 2012. As required by its lease, …