N.Y. Appeals Court Finds Against Zurich in Sandy Delay-In-Completion Coverage Action

NEW YORK — A New York appellate court has upheld a denial of summary judgment to an insurer in a coverage dispute involving Superstorm Sandy-related construction delays, ruling that ambiguities in the policy, coupled with extrinsic evidence, tend to favor the claimant.

On Jan. 26, the New York Appellate Division, 1st Department, noted that the policy covered “risks attendant to a commercial construction project on a specified parcel of property," and there is evidence indicating that Zurich Insurance Co. intended to insure the project knowing that the different tiers of financing would be allocated among various entities.

El-Ad was insured …