Calif. Event Promoter’s COVID-19 Coverage Action Dismissed with Leave to Amend

SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal judge has dismissed without prejudice an event promoter’s lawsuit demanding to coverage from Vigilant Insurance Co. for COVID-19-related business income losses, ruling it did not adequately plead “direct loss or damage to property” as required by the policy.

In a Feb. 25 order, Judge Vince Chhabria of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California explained that Another Planet Entertainment LLC did not allege that its facilities shut down due to the virus’s presence on surfaces. Therefore, there was no “direct physical loss or damage” to the facilities, the judge reasoned.

Another …