Founding partner of Spiros Law, P.C., Jim Spiros, recently spoke with the DJ’s on WFAV, WIVR, and WVLI to discuss how our attorneys are still able to represent clients during this time of shelter in place. Jim reiterated how our staff has been able to transition daily operations to remote, home environments by utilizing the technology we have available. He confirmed that our staff has been using electronic communication to keep our representation of clients the same by conducting business over the phone or through online video chats.
Ultimately, Jim wanted to remind listeners that we are conducting business as usual with all current or new clients without being able to meet face-to-face in an office setting. Apart from this, Jim discussed the rights of businesses that were forced to close or scale back their operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most businesses have insurance policies, but something that is often overlooked is whether they include business interruption coverage.
Jim explained that business interruption coverage is intended to allow a business to return to normal operations after a disaster has occurred. What this means is that if a business is interrupted from a disaster, such as a flood or fire, the insurance company will pay for losses suffered during the interruption. However, the current coronavirus pandemic can also be classified as a disaster that forced a business’ daily operations to be interrupted.
Jim informed radio listeners that every business owner should pull their insurance policy and have it reviewed by a qualified attorney to see if there is business interruption coverage included in the policy. If there is a business interruption provision, an attorney can assist a business owner with putting their insurance company on notice in a timely manner. Additionally, if a business owner does not put their insurance company on notice in a timely manner, the insurance company may say that you failed to put them on notice properly and that they lost their chances to investigate the claim.
The most important thing for business owners is to speak with an attorney about the insurance policy and put the insurance company on notice because they will try to deny the claim right off the bat. It is imperative to have an attorney, such as the ones at Spiros Law, interpret the insurance policy and make proper notice to the insurance company in order to take their defense away from them to ensure that the policy can be implemented. Most business owners working with Spiros in reviewing their insurance policies have been obtaining their policy from their agent, emailing it to one of our attorneys, and then scheduling a phone call or video chat to review the policy and decide what steps should be taken next.
Jim told listeners that our firm has been reviewing a lot of business insurance policies right now to determine if there is business interruption coverage. While some policies have what is called a “virus exclusion,” which means that there is no coverage during a virus or bacteria event, many do not have that exclusion. However, even without the “virus exclusion” included in insurance policies, many insurance companies are still denying business interruption coverage claims that should qualify for coverage.
To end the radio interview, Jim reminded listeners that one of our attorneys can review a business owner’s insurance policy for free of cost. If one of our attorneys decides to take the case, we work on a contingency fee basis, which means that a payment is only owed if we are successful in recovering compensation for the business owner. To have one of our attorneys review your business insurance policy, contact our office today at 815-929-9292, email us, or chat with us online at our website.
You can listen to the full interview here:
