Metallica’s Covid insurance lawsuit rejected
California’s court of appeals has dismissed Metallica’s lawsuit demanding more than $3 million (€2.75m) in losses for concerts cancelled due to the pandemic.
The band sued Lloyd’s of London over six axed South American dates in 2020, saying they had acquired a standard cancellation, abandonment and non-appearance insurance policy to cover their losses if any of the tour was postponed or cancelled.
But Justice Maria Stratton ruled the shows were not covered by Metallica’s insurance policy because of an exclusion in the contract for any losses stemming from “communicable diseases”, reports Billboard.
The group had argued the case should have gone to trial, as a jury could have decided the gigs were cancelled for non-Covid reasons. But Stratton, who bizarrely quoted Taylor Swift in her ruling, said it was “absurd to think that government closures were not the result of Covid-19″.
“To paraphrase Taylor Swift, ‘We were there. We remember it all too well’”
“To paraphrase Taylor Swift, ‘We were there. We remember it all too well,’” she wrote. “There was no vaccine against Covid-19 in March 2020 and no drugs to treat it. Ventilators were in short supply. N-95 masks were all but non-existent. Patients were being treated in tents in hospital parking lots.
“The mortality rate of Covid-19 was unknown, but to give just one example of the potential fatality rate, by late March, 2020, New York City was using refrigerated trucks as temporary morgues. People were terrified.”
Lloyd’s has not commented on the lawsuit, except to point out that it is not an insurance company, but rather oversees and regulates a market of independent insurers.
Meanwhile, a lawsuit filed by Live Nation in 2021 against insurer Factory Mutual for failing to cover its “unprecedented” losses as a result of the concert business shutdown, is still pending.
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UK’s £800m government insurance scheme opens
The British government’s highly anticipated £800 million insurance scheme for live events is now open.
The Live Events Reinsurance Scheme, announced at the beginning of August, will cover costs incurred if an event has to be cancelled, postponed, relocated or abandoned due to a government-imposed lockdown in response to Covid-19.
The cover, which is a partnership between the government and the Lloyd’s of London insurance market, is now available to purchase alongside standard commercial events insurance for an additional premium.
To be eligible, event organisers must purchase the relevant cover from participating insurers within the scheme, including Arch, Beazley, Dale, Hiscox and Munich Re.
Organisers must also have or purchase a standard events cancellation policy (or a policy that includes event cancellation coverage) provided at least in part by a participating insurer.
“This is an important and valuable step in the right direction and provides additional security as we head into autumn and winter”
The indemnification must be purchased at least eight weeks prior to the event taking place. This requirement will not apply for the first 12 weeks of the scheme, which starts today (22 September 2021) and runs until the end of September 2022.
Premium is set at 5% of the total value of insured costs (plus Insurance Premium Tax) and claims will be subject to an excess of 5% of the value of the insured costs or £1,000 (whichever is higher) per policy.
The scheme will not cover loss of revenue due to lower demand for tickets, reduced venue capacity, or self-isolation of staff or performers.
“The live music industry welcomes the introduction of a government-backed insurance scheme, which we have been calling for since the start of the pandemic,” says a spokesperson from Live, (Live music Industry Venues and Entertainment) – which has been pushing for government-guaranteed insurance since at least this time last year.
“While there are still gaps in the cover available, such as for an artist withdrawal due to catching Covid or enforced social distancing, this is an important and valuable step in the right direction and provides additional security as we head into autumn and winter. After a year of almost total shutdown the industry needs a period of time where it can get back on its feet by provide the live experiences that fans are desperate for.”
Full details of the Live Events Reinsurance Scheme are available here.
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Metallica sue Lloyd’s over postponed tour losses
Metallica have filed a lawsuit against Lloyd’s of London, claiming that the organisation relied on an ‘unreasonably restrictive interpretation’ of an insurance policy purchased to cover its 2020 South American tour.
The band were due to play six dates across the continent in April 2020 and say that they had acquired a standard cancellation, abandonment and non-appearance insurance policy to cover their losses if any of the tour was postponed or cancelled.
The Covid-19 pandemic initially saw those dates postponed until December 2020, before being postponed again. As yet, no rescheduled dates have been announced.
The suit says Lloyd’s denied the claim for losses based on a communicable disease exclusion, which Metallica dispute
Crucially, the lawsuit, filed last week in the Los Angeles Superior Court, says that Lloyd’s denied the claim for losses based on a communicable disease exclusion, which Metallica dispute, reports CBS Los Angeles.
As with previous lawsuits targeting Lloyd’s, such as those brought by Foo Fighters and Kanye West, it is likely the Metallica suit is targeting a specific Lloyd’s insurer or syndicate rather than the market itself.
Lloyd’s has not commented on the lawsuit, except to point out that it is not an insurance company, but rather oversees and regulates a market of independent insurers.
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Kanye’s VGT settles with sued Lloyd’s insurers
Kanye West’s Very Good Touring (VGT) company says it has settled “amicably” its legal complaint against Lloyd’s of London insurance brokers over an alleged US$10m in unpaid claims, after the suit was dismissed and all parties agreed to pay their own costs.
VGT last August sued several syndicates at Lloyd’s of London, the insurance market, for breach of contract after they refused to pay out for cancelled shows on his 2016 Saint Pablo tour. West called off the remainder of the North American tour on 21 November 2016, two days after cutting short a show in Sacramento and embarking on a 25-minute, apparently unscripted onstage rant praising Donald Trump and criticising Hillary Clinton, Jay Z, Beyoncé and Facebook. He was later admitted to a Los Angeles mental hospital, Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, apparently suffering from exhaustion and sleep deprivation.
The suit alleged the five Lloyd’s insurers – Cathedral Syndicate 2010, Liberty Syndicate 4472, XL Catlin Syndicate 2003, Markel Syndicate 3000 and Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty – told West that “they may deny coverage of the claim on the unsupportable contention that use of marijuana by Kanye caused the medical condition”.
The insurers later hit back with a suit of their own, denying implying West’s use of cannabis “provides the sole basis” for their rejection of the claim, instead accusing his representatives of sabotaging their investigation, “contrary to the duties of cooperation VGT agreed to as a condition” of the policy.
“Substantial irregularities” in Kanye records, says counterclaim
Terms of the final settlement were not disclosed, although a California court order notes that both plaintiff and defendants will each bear “that party’s own attorney’s fees and costs”.
TMZ reports that “Lloyd’s [sic] folded under massive pressure by Kanye’s lawyers and agreed to pay most of what Kanye was due under the policy”, while VGT lawyer Howard King says in a statement the “dispute has been amicably resolved”.
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“Substantial irregularities” in Kanye records, says counterclaim
Several Lloyd’s of London insurers are counter-suing Kanye West, alleging representatives for the rapper’s company, Very Good Touring (VGT), “wilfully concealed and or misrepresented relevant facts” in an effort to thwart underwriters’ investigation into the partial cancellation of his Saint Pablo tour.
West called off the remainder of the North American tour on 21 November 2016, two days after cutting short a show in Sacramento and embarking on a 25-minute, apparently unscripted onstage rant praising Donald Trump and criticising Hillary Clinton, Jay Z, Beyoncé and Facebook. He was later admitted to a Los Angeles mental hospital, Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, apparently suffering from exhaustion and sleep deprivation.
Earlier this month it was reported VGT was suing several syndicates at Lloyd’s of London, the insurance market, for breach of contract after they refused to pay out for the cancelled shows. The suit alleges the Lloyd’s insurers told West that “they may deny coverage of the claim on the unsupportable contention that use of marijuana by Kanye caused the medical condition”.
In a counterclaim, filed in US district court for central California on Tuesday, five Lloyd’s underwriters – Cathedral Syndicate 2010, Liberty Syndicate 4472, XL Catlin Syndicate 2003, Markel Syndicate 3000 and Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty – deny implying that West’s use of cannabis “provides the sole basis” for their denial of the US$10.8m claim, instead accusing his representatives of sabotaging their investigation, “contrary to the duties of cooperation VGT agreed to as a condition” of the policy.
“Throughout underwriters’ investigation, VGT and its legal, medical and other agents and representatives have delayed, hindered, stalled and/or refused to provide information both relevant and necessary for underwriters to complete their investigation of the claim,” reads the complaint.
The investigation has turned up “substantial irregularities in Mr West’s medical history”
“Underwriters are informed and believe, and thereon, these same persons have wilfully concealed and or misrepresented relevant facts in an effort to thwart underwriters’ investigation.”
The suit also says the insurers’ investigation, based on “documents and other information necessary to determine VGT’s entitlement to coverage under the policy”, has turned up “substantial irregularities in Mr West’s medical history”, although it declined to provide specifics.
While the plaintiffs – who have demanded a jury trial – maintain they are unable to reach a conclusion until VGT supplies “additional information requested” as part of their investigation, West’s lawyer, Howard King, criticised the counterclaim as amounting to the “same generic response Lloyd’s files in all cases when they don’t want to honour a legitimate claim but can’t find a factual basis to deny a claim.
“We look forward to the day a jury awards our client the full amount of the policy he purchased, plus interest at 10% per annum, along with punitive damages.”
A similar lawsuit, brought by Foo Fighters against several Lloyd’s brokers for “inconsistent, erratic and unreasonable behaviour” after the partial cancellation of the band’s Sonic Highways tour, was dismissed by the same court last October.
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