Illinois Hair Salon Can Sue Insurer for Covid-19 Shutdown Losses

An Illinois hair salon forced to close its doors during the Covid-19 pandemic won an early round in its lawsuit against West Bend Mutual Insurance Co., when a federal judge said the salon may be entitled to coverage under a communicable disease provision in its business insurance policy.

West Bend argued that it didn’t have to cover Treo Salon Inc.'s losses stemming from state shutdown orders, because the salon’s insurance policy covered only shutdowns tied to a disease outbreak on its specific premises. Treo disagreed with this interpretation, saying its premises were included geographically in the shutdown order signed by ...