Page 5 - FDCC Insights Spring 2022

unrest. As a result, many businesses lost income and sought coverage under their insurance policies.
Many commercial property policies provide coverage for “riot” and “civil commotion.” Other policies have “riot” or “civil commotion” exclusions. Similarly, many commercial property policies provide coverage for losses incurred while access to a covered location, or a location within a specified distance of a covered location, is denied by an order of civil authority.
To determine the existence and scope of coverage for damage and lost income resulting from the riots, we must consider the following questions: (a) Did a “riot” or “civil commotion” occur? (b) If property damage occurred while businesses were closed, is coverage precluded by vacancy exclusions or occupancy requirements? (c) Did the lost business income resulting from curfew orders qualify for “civil authority” coverage? (d) How many “occurrences” were triggered by the riots? (e) Is there coverage for losses caused by both covered and excluded perils?
A. Did a “Riot” or “Civil Commotion” Occur?
1. “Riot”
While the policy definition of “riot” governs, many policies do not define the term “riot.” Therefore, we generally rely on statutory and common law definitions of the term when evaluating coverage for claims associated with a potential “riot.” Individual states differ in their definitions of “riot,” and the facts of each claim must be measured against the definition of the governing jurisdiction to determine whether a riot occurred. Below, we analyze the law in a few of the jurisdictions in which protests and riots were most prevalent in the summer of 2020.
Insights SPRING2021
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