Ill. Resort Owner Loses Bid for COVID-19 Business Interruption Coverage

EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. — An Illinois resort owner cannot recoup COVID-19-related economic losses from Philadelphia Insurance Co. because it did not sustain “direct physical loss of or damage to property,” as required by the policy.

In a Dec. 20 order, Judge Stephen P. McGlynn of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois found the plaintiff did not sustain a physical alteration to its property.

Reubel Adventures Inc. owns and operates Aeries Cottages, a resort in Grafton, Ill. Beginning in March 2020, the company sustained business income losses when government orders issued in response to the COVID-19 …