Covid-19 insurance claims and denial of access non-damage cover (UK)

Donald Dinnie, Norton Rose Fulbright

In this recent judgement, the UK High Court dealt with a dispute relating to the policy’s denial of access non-damage clause which provided cover for loss “resulting from interruption or interference with the business where access to or premises is restricted or hindered for more than the franchised period shown in your schedule arising directly from …. the actions taken by the police or any other statutory body in response to a danger or disturbance at your premises or within a 1 mile radius of your premises.”

The exclusion for notifiable diseases did not include Covid-19.

Each of the premises was closed for three occasions.

The court held that the denial of access non-damage clause applied to the losses. The court said that as long as there was a local manifestation it was not relevant that the danger was not confined to the locality.

The words “a danger” were not limited to a local danger and could apply to a generalised danger. The words “at the premises” did not mean the danger had to be local.

The court said that the disease exclusion demonstrated that the non-excluded diseases were covered.

The court also held that the causation requirement was satisfied. Provided there was one outbreak within the radius, the fact that there were other outbreaks outside the radius did not affect the causal impact of the local outbreak.

First published by: Financial Institutions Legal Snapshot