N.J. Judge Tosses Boardwalk Co.’s COVID-19 Coverage Action

TOMS RIVER, N.J. — A New Jersey judge has dismissed a boardwalk attraction company’s COVID-19 business interruption coverage action, ruling that it failed to allege direct physical loss, as required by the policies.

In a July 2 order, Judge Craig L. Wellerson of the Ocean County (N.J.) Superior Court further ruled that the losses sustained by Jenkinson’s South Inc. and Jenkinson’s Pavilion fall within the “all-risk” policies’ exclusions for “pollutants or contaminants,” “virus or bacteria,” and biological material exclusions.

Jenkinson’s boardwalk and amusement businesses in Point Pleasant Beach, N.J., sustained economic losses after they temporarily closed in March 2020 in …