COVID-19 Not Covered Under Pollution Policy, Ariz. Federal Judge Rules

PHOENIX — An Arizona federal judge has granted Illinois Union Insurance Co.’s motion to dismiss a $2 million COVID-19 coverage action filed by a Lake Havasu, Ariz., resort, ruling that the virus cannot be construed as “traditional environmental pollution,” and is therefore not covered under the policy.

In a Dec. 4 order, Judge G. Murray Snow of the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona held that London Bridge Resort LLC is not entitled to coverage under the policy’s provision for “first-party claims” arising from a “pollution condition” because COVID-19 does not constitute a “pollution condition.”

“The term ‘pollution …