Ill. Fitness Center Owners Lose Federal Court Battle for COVID-19 Coverage

CHICAGO — The owners of an Illinois fitness center and café cannot recoup from Cincinnati Insurance Co. COVID-19-related financial losses because they did not sustain “direct physical loss of or damage to” insured property, an Illinois federal judge has ruled.

In a Jan. 20 order, Judge Mary M. Rowland of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois relied upon a recent 7th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ ruling that mere “loss of use” does not trigger coverage for losses sustained during the pandemic.

Plaintiffs 1501 Busch Parkway LLC, Sky Fitness Corp. and their affiliates own Sky Fitness …