Buffalo Martial Arts Studio Loses Bid for COVID-19 Coverage

BUFFALO, N.Y. — The owners of a Buffalo, N.Y., martial arts and fitness studio cannot recover for COVID-19-related losses from their insurers because they did not sustain “direct physical loss or damage” as required by the policy, a federal judge has ruled.

In an April 22 order, Judge Geoffrey W. Crawford of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York concluded that neither government closure orders issued in response to the pandemic or the COVID-19 virus itself change or alter property.

The judge explained that “courts commonly require proof of a change or alteration of the …