Pols want insurers to pay for
income losses during pandemic
COURIER LIFE, MAY 1-7, 2020 3
BY JESSICA PARKS
A pair of Brooklyn lawmakers
introduced legislation
on April 23 that, if signed
into law, would force insurance
companies to pay out
business interruption claims
for revenue losses racked up
during the ongoing coronavirus
pandemic.
“This is an interruption
on business on a very largescale,”
said state Senator
Andrew Gounardes, who introduced
the bill in the senate.
“What good is carrying
insurance if the insurance
won’t pay a claim?”
Park Slope Assemblyman
Robert Carroll — the bill’s
sponsor in the assembly —
drafted the legislation after
hearing that insurance
companies were refusing to
pay business interruption
claims, pointing to virus exclusions
written into policies.
Meanwhile, business owners
paying hefty insurance
premiums have been left to
foot the bill at the same time
they experience dramatic
losses due to outbreak-related
shutdowns.
“The insurance industry
is sitting on $900 billion in
reserves while small businesses
who have paid business
interruption premiums
for years have their claims
denied over and over again
because the insurance industry
claims COVID-19 doesn’t
constitute a business interruption,”
Carroll said. “This
is absurd, greedy, immoral,
and factually incorrect.”
Business interruption insurance
typically compensates
policyholders for loss
of income and covers payroll
costs during a disastrous
event, which could buoy
many of the borough’s business
owners who were not
granted aid in the federal coronavirus
package.
“This would be a lifeline,”
Gounardes said. “Until the
small business loan package
actually delivers relief to
small business owners, and
so far we’ve seen it has been
very few, we need to make
sure we are turning every
stone possible to get small
businesses the help that they
need.
A survey released by the
Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce
found a whopping 84
percent of borough’s businesses
who applied did not receive
funding in the federal
Paycheck Protection Program,
while larger businesses
like Ruth’s Chris Steak House
and Eataly are reported to
have received millions of dollars
in federal aid.
If the legislation is passed,
business owners will be eligible
to collect on business
interruption claims if they
held a policy on or before
March 7 — the day Gov. Andrew
Cuomo declared a state
of emergency.
The bill has been referred
to committee in both the
senate and the assembly, although
it is unclear when
they will be released for a
fl oor vote.
A pair of Brooklyn pols want insurance companies to put their money
where their mouth is when it comes to paying out business interruption
claims during the pandemic. Pexels