The National Response to COVID-19: A Brief Overview
In early 2020, the nation was in a state of emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Recognizing the risk of mass evictions as a result of the pandemic, many state and local governments enacted a moratorium on residential evictions. These moratoria effectively denied landlords the right to pursue an unlawful detainer (eviction) action – the only legal means of removing tenants for failure to pay rent.
Washington State’s Eviction Moratorium and the ERPP Initiative
In Washington state, an eviction moratorium was in effect from March 18, 2020, through October 31, 2021. Following the end of the moratorium, the Washington state legislature passed E2SSB 5160 authorizing the establishment of an Eviction Resolution Pilot Program (ERPP) in any county in Washington state. The ERPP was designed to facilitate dispute resolution between landlords and tenants, by connecting them with a dispute resolution specialist and resources such as rental repayment assistance. Once the eviction moratorium ended on November 1, 2022, six counties in Washington state elected to participate in the ERPP: King, Pierce, Snohomish, Clark, Spokane, and Thurston. Each program established a local Dispute Resolution Center (DRC) and operated pursuant to a standing order issued by the local superior court.
Pursuant to the ERPP, landlords in participating counties were required to provide tenants with an ERPP Notice, advising tenants of their rights under the ERPP, and a proposed repayment plan for outstanding rent amounts owed. Upon receiving an ERPP Notice and proposed repayment plan, tenants had 14 days to negotiate a proposed settlement with their landlord via the local DRC. In circumstances where the landlord and tenant failed to come to an agreement during the 14-day period, or the tenant breached the agreement, the landlord was then authorized to send the tenant a 14-day notice to pay or vacate.
The End of ERPP and Its Impact
The ERPP ended by statute on July 1, 2023. Dispute Resolution Centers statewide reported that over 78,000 cases were closed and completed during the life of the program, and 73% of these cases closed because the landlord and tenant reached an agreement. Now that the program has ended, landlords are no longer required to provide tenants with an ERPP Notice or a proposed repayment plan before proceeding with an unlawful detainer for unpaid rent.
The end of the ERPP marks the end of all remaining COVID-19 eviction protections for tenants. However, some counties in Washington state still maintain permanent eviction moratoriums during parts of the year. In Seattle, City Council Ordinance 126041 creates a defense to eviction for tenants who would have to vacate their housing between December 1 through February 28 each year. Additionally, Seattle City Council Ordinance 126369 creates a defense to evictions for anyone in school, with children in school, or working at a school during the City of Seattle Public school year, which is generally the beginning of September through mid-June.
Need Legal Assistance? Contact Lether Law Group
Lether Law Group has attorneys licensed and actively participating in eviction proceedings in Washington state. To the extent that you have any questions about Washington landlord-tenant law or eviction moratoria, please feel free to contact us by phone at (206) 467-5444 or via email at info@letherlaw.com.
Thanksgiving is a time to spend with family and friends and celebrate all that we are thankful for. It is also a time for a cornucopia of potential insurance claims. Thanksgiving-related insurance claims can run the gamut from auto accidents, to slip-and-falls, fire losses, and even business losses.
This year, it is estimated that 54.6 million people will travel more than 50 miles for their Thanksgiving celebrations, which greatly increases the risk of an auto accident or other travel-related insurance claim. In addition, the National Fire Protection Association (“NFPA”) has noted that Thanksgiving is the leading day of the year for home cooking fires in the United States.[1] In fact, the NFPA has reported that home cooking fire reports increase over 200% on Thanksgiving Day versus the daily average for the rest of the year.[2]
Increased risks of insurance claims are also not limited to homeowners and/or auto claims and the risks do not end on Thanksgiving Day. Millions of Americans will also venture out on Black Friday to take advantage of the many deals that can be found on the biggest shopping day of the year. This leads to increased exposure for businesses from parking lot accidents, slip-and-falls, miscellaneous property damage, and theft.
The increased number of losses over the Thanksgiving Weekend also results in an uptick in insurance claims under auto policies, homeowners policies, and business insurance policies. This means that insurers need to be ready to staff and handle a potentially large volume of new claims, both first-party and third-party, in the days and weeks surrounding the Thanksgiving Holiday.
With these increased risks in mind, the Lether Law Group Family encourages everyone to use extra caution as you enjoy time with family and friends and/or as you venture out on Black Friday.
If something unexpected should occur or if you need advice for post-Thanksgiving-related insurance claims, please keep in mind that the attorneys at Lether Law Group have over 33 years in combined experience in advising insurers and defending first and third-party claims. This includes providing coverage advice and defending large property losses, catastrophic accident injuries, and other spontaneous and unexpected claims. Please feel free to contact us at any time if you would like to discuss any Thanksgiving-related claims or any other matter.
On October 17, 2022. The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued additional Opinions regarding COVID-19 Business Interruption claims.
In McCulloch, et al v. Valley Forge Ins. Co., et al¸ No. 21-35520, 2022 U.S. App. LEXIS 2860, 2022 WL 9830777 (9th Cir. Oct. 17, 2022), the Court affirmed a summary judgment ruling from the Western District of Washington dismissing claims by several dentists/dental clinics. The Plaintiffs argued that their claims were improperly dismissed because they asserted the claims resulted from “direct physical loss of or physical damage to” their insured premises. The Ninth Circuit disagreed.
While the appeal was pending, the Washington State Supreme Court issued its ruling in Hill & Stout, PLLC v. Mutual of Enumclaw Ins. Co., 515 P.3d 525 (2022), in which the Supreme Court held that “loss of intended use of property” and “loss of business income” from COVID-19 orders did not qualify for insurance coverage as “direct physical loss of or damage to property.” As a result, the Ninth Circuit dismissed the breach of contract/direct physical loss claim. The Court also dismissed Plaintiff’s claims that they were entitled to coverage under the policies’ civil authority coverage because there was no evidence that the Washington State Governor’s orders were in response to any actual physical property damages. Therefore, the Ninth Circuit concluded that the Hill & Stout Opinion also precludes coverage.
In addition, the Ninth Circuit dismissed the appeal for extra-contractual claims. With respect to the extra-contractual claims, certain Plaintiffs argued that the insurer unreasonably denied their claim and failed to conduct a reasonable investigation of the claims. The Ninth Circuit rejected both arguments. Specifically, the Court noted that the unreasonable denial claim first required a showing of an incorrect denial of the claim. Because the claim was properly denied, the extra-contractual claim failed. The Court rejected the unreasonable investigation argument because “the insurer’s denial of coverage was based on a legal interpretation of the policy. [As a result,] [t]here was no need for factual investigation…”
In Hot Yoga, Inc. v. Philadelphia Indem. Ins. Co.¸No. 21-35806, 2022 U.S. App. LEXIS 28674, 2022 WL 9732180 (9th Cir. 2022), the Ninth Circuit similarly affirmed dismissal of contractual claims based on the Washington State Supreme Court’s Opinion in Hill & Stout. In addition, the Court held that the policy’s virus exclusion, precluding coverage when a virus initiates the causal chain that led to the cause of any claimed loss, barred coverage.
The Ninth Circuit also rejected the insured’s arguments regarding its extra-contractual claims. The insured argued that the district court erred in dismissing extra-contractual claims premised on the insurer allegedly “misrepresenting the pertinent policy language and preemptively denying the claim without any investigation.” The Ninth Circuit held that the claims necessarily failed because the policy did not provide coverage.
As we previously opined, it is clear that the Washington State Supreme Court’s decision and reasoning in Hill & Stout is having a substantial impact on pending COVID-19 BI claims in Washington. We anticipate that there will be several other similar rulings in the near future.
If you have any questions about the above Ninth Circuit cases and how the Hill and Stout case will continue to impact COVID-19 BI claims and cases, please give us a call.
Kevin J. Kay
Shareholder
Kevin is a graduate of Pacific Lutheran University and Seattle University School of Law. He is licensed to practice in the state and federal courts of Washington and admitted to practice before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. In addition, Kevin has appeared pro hac vice in courts in Louisiana and California. Kevin has represented insurers and insureds in coverage for 16 years. These claims involve personal and commercial auto policies, commercial general liability, professional liability, and E&O insurance. Kevin has also advised and represented risk pools, insurers, and insured in matters ranging from automobile/bus accidents to catastrophic landslides. His practice also includes construction defect disputes, personal injury claims, commercial leases, and significant property damage disputes.
As insurance professionals and insurance lawyers are aware, Washington State is historically one of the most liberal jurisdictions in the country. This has often led to decisions and rulings that favor policy holders. However, on August 25, 2022, the Washington State Supreme Court issued a decision finding that COVID-19 related business income losses are not covered under standard commercial property insurance policies. Hill & Stout, PLLC v. Mutual of Enumclaw Insurance Company, Cause No. 100211-4.
Hill & Stout is a Washington dentistry practice. When the COVID-19 pandemic first arose in the State of Washington, Governor Jay Inslee declared a state of emergency and issued multiple proclamations relating to public health and safety, including a proclamation prohibiting all non-emergent dental procedures. In light of the emergence of COVID-19 and the governmental and societal response thereto, Hill & Stout joined thousands of businesses in Washington and around the country in seeking Business Interruption coverage under its commercial property policy.
Mutual of Enumclaw (MOE) denied Hill & Stout’s claim effectively for two reasons. First, the business income loss coverage is triggered only where there is “direct physical loss or damage” to the insured premises. Second, the MOE policy contained an exclusion for any losses caused by a virus. Hill & Stout sued in the King County Superior Court.
Since the inception of the global pandemic, thousands of lawsuits relating to business income loss coverage have been filed by businesses seeking to recover their losses. The courts around the U.S. have been nearly universal in finding that there is no coverage for these claims. In fact, as Lether Law Group has previously reported, the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington has previously ruled in favor of insurers on these claims. Germack v. The Dentists Insurance Company, W.D. Wa. Cause No. 2:20-cv-00661-BJR.
However, until Hill & Stout, the highest court in the State of Washington had not fully and finally resolved the issue in this jurisdiction. In Hill & Stout, the Supreme Court found that there is no coverage for COVID-related business losses because the virus and the governmental proclamations related thereto do not cause direct physical loss or damage to the insured premises. The insured had focused their argument on the claim that they had a “loss” of the business. The Supreme Court rejected that argument finding that the loss was not “physical”.
The Court went on to find that the efficient proximate cause of the business losses was not the governmental response to the virus, but the virus itself. As a result, the Court held that the virus exclusion would operate to preclude coverage, even if there was a direct physical loss.
Lether Law Group represents multiple carriers in Washington and in jurisdictions around the United States in COVID-related business income loss claims. This includes the Germack case referenced above. If you would like to speak with us regarding these or any other claims, please contact us at any time.
Kevin J. Kay
Shareholder
Kevin is a graduate of Pacific Lutheran University and Seattle University School of Law. He is licensed to practice in the state and federal courts of Washington and admitted to practice before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. In addition, Kevin has appeared pro hac vice in courts in Louisiana and California. Kevin has represented insurers and insureds in coverage for 16 years. These claims involve personal and commercial auto policies, commercial general liability, professional liability, and E&O insurance. Kevin has also advised and represented risk pools, insurers, and insured in matters ranging from automobile/bus accidents to catastrophic landslides. His practice also includes construction defect disputes, personal injury claims, commercial leases, and significant property damage disputes.
On May 28, 2021, the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington issued an Order Granting Motions to Dismiss, which given various consolidations effectively dismissed 60+ COVID-19 Business Interruption cases, including in Germack v. The Dentists Insurance Company, Cause No. 2:20-cv-00616.
The Business Income Loss coverage in the policies issued by the multiple defendant insurers provides coverage for loss of business income due to a necessary suspension of operations because of “direct physical loss of or damage to the insured premises,” caused by a “covered cause of loss.” The Court focused its analysis on whether COVID-19 has caused “direct physical loss of or damage to” the insured premises and whether virus exclusions operate to eliminate COVID-19 as a “covered cause of loss.”
Regarding the first issue, the Court engages in a thorough analysis of what it is that constitutes “direct physical loss of or damage to” insured property, paying particular attention to the distinction between the terms “loss” and “damage”. As to the term “damage”, the Court rejected the argument that the average purchaser of insurance would believe that COVID-19 causes damage because it contaminates and therefore alters physical surfaces. The Court ultimately agreed with other Courts throughout the country, holding as follows:
The Court rejects this interpretation of direct physical damage. As numerous courts have recognized, “COVID-19 hurts people, not property,” . . . as “the pandemic impacts human health and human behavior, not physical structures,”. . . The Court concludes that COVID-19 does not cause direct physical damage to property as the term is used in the insurance policies.
Regarding the term “loss”, the Court concluded that when combined with ‘direct’ and ‘physical’, “’loss’ means that the alleged peril must set into motion events which cause inability to physically own or manipulate the property, such as theft or total destruction.” The Court further noted that interpreting the policy to require tangible dispossession is consistent with insurance law doctrine holding that all-risk policies are intended to cover damage to property rather than economic losses.
In regard to the applicability of the Virus exclusions, the Court first rejected the argument that there is somehow a distinction between a “virus” and a “pandemic.” The Court then addressed the Plaintiff Group’s efficient proximate cause argument, finding that under Washington law, the efficient proximate cause of the Business Income losses was not the governmental proclamations, but the virus itself. Finally, the Court rejected a regulatory estoppel argument, finding that it would not recognize a rule that the Washington Supreme Court has not adopted.
Honorable Barbara Rothstein’s Order, which can be accessed here, is amongst the most comprehensive in the nation, and is likely to serve as teaching material in law schools for years to come.
Lether Law Group represents The Dentists Insurance Company in the Germack matter, which was designated as a national class action for dentists impacted by COVID-19.
Lether Law Group is also currently representing several other insurers in COVID-19 business interruption litigation in state, federal, and tribal courts in Washington, Oregon, California, and Pennsylvania amongst others. If you would like to discuss or have any questions about COVID-19 business interruption claims and/or litigation, please feel free to contact our office.
COVID-19 Business Interruption Case Law: The Western District of Washington Denies Plaintiffs’ Motions to Certify Questions to the Washington State Supreme Court
In February of 2021, Plaintiffs in 10 consolidated cases before the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, including in Germack v. The Dentists Insurance Company, Cause No. 2:20-cv-00616, filed motions to certify questions to the Washington State Supreme Court regarding business interruption coverage for losses arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Plaintiffs’ group specifically sought to certify the following questions:
Does being physically deprived of the ability to use covered property directly as a result of the Governor’s shut-down orders constitute a “direct physical loss of” such property?
Does Washington’s efficient proximate cause rule require a factual determination of the predominant cause of an individual business’s loss, before a virus (or other) exclusion may be applied to bar coverage?
On April 23, 2021, Plaintiffs’ motion was denied. The Court began by noting the Plaintiffs’ argument that “the Washington Supreme Court has not yet addressed the question of whether COVID-19 and its resulting business closures and limitations causes ‘direct physical loss’ to an insured property,” and that the Court should defer to the Supreme Court to determine the issue. The Court rejected Plaintiffs’ argument in whole, noting that at least five other federal courts addressing similar issues have considered certification to their respective state supreme courts and found certification to be unnecessary:
This Court has at its command all the tools necessary to reach its decision, including the extensive briefing provided by the numerous parties in the consolidated cases on both questions Plaintiffs seek to certify.
Additionally, the Court found “several other strong federal interests weigh against certification,” including the constitutional provisions for diversity for out-of-state parties, the number of putative class actions filed under the Class Action Fairness Act of 2005, and the unjustifiable delay and expense that would be incurred if certification was allowed. The Court ultimately denied Plaintiffs’ motion for certification, finding that Plaintiffs’ questions “do not present such unique and exceptional issues as to warrant certification.”
Lether Law Group represents The Dentists Insurance Company in the Germack matter, which is designated as a national class action for dentists impacted by COVID-19. TDIC’s Motion for Summary Judgment on the coverage issue is currently pending before the Court as is a Motion for Dismissal of the Class Allegations.
Lether Law Group is also currently representing several other insurers in COVID-19 business interruption litigation in state, federal, and tribal courts in Washington, Oregon, California, and Pennsylvania amongst others. If you would like to discuss or have any questions about COVID-19 business interruption claims and/or litigation, please feel free to contact our office.
The above article is an opinion based on various resources such as industry knowledge and is not to be construed as legal advice or to be used as such. If you require legal advice or would like to inquire further about the information contained in this article, please feel free to contact our office directly.
