Judge Says METALLICA's Lawsuit Over Losses From Postponed South American Tour During Pandemic Can Proceed

According to Business Insurance, a Los Angeles state court has refused to dismiss METALLICA's lawsuit against Lloyd's Of London for allegedly failing to cover the band for financial losses suffered when the legendary heavy metal act was forced to postpone six shows in 2020 because of the pandemic.

The California Superior Court said that it could not dismiss the lawsuit at this preliminary stage of the litigation because a "proximate cause" has not been established as to what caused the loss involved.

The lawsuit stems from the cancelation of METALLICA's six-date tour of South America in April 2020. Just weeks prior to the tour's scheduled launch, COVID-19-related travel restrictions were enacted in all parts of the world, giving METALLICA no choice but to postpone the dates.

According to METALLICA's complaint, which was filed in June in Los Angeles Superior Court, the band's standard "cancellation, abandonment and non-appearance insurance" policy with Lloyd's Of London was denied by the insurer, which cited the policy's communicable disease exclusion. The lawsuit calls the move "an unreasonably restrictive interpretation of the policy" and alleges breach of contract. METALLICA argued that Lloyd's "cannot conclusively say that the Pandemic is the efficient proximate cause of the cancellations because there are other adequately alleged causes that are covered under the Policy," the ruling said.

The complaint alleges "that travel restrictions, the duty to mitigate damages, the need to 'flatten the curve' and stay-at-home orders all caused the Shows' cancellations," the ruling said.

Shortly after METALLICA filed the lawsuit, a Lloyd's representative clarified via a press statement: "Lloyd's is not an insurance company, it oversees and regulates a market of independent insurers. For that reason, we have no information on any specific policy or lawsuit and in any event are not authorized to comment on matters in litigation."

In its suit, METALLICA acknowledged Lloyd's as "a market in which independent insurance underwriters join together syndicates to sell insurance, mainly through brokers, under the umbrella of the Lloyd's brand name."

METALLICA is seeking unspecified compensatory damages as well as a declaration of the rights and obligations of the parties.

This is not the first time Lloyd's Of London has been involved in a lawsuit related to the cancelation of major rock concerts. Back in 2016, FOO FIGHTERS settled their lawsuit against the world-famous 335-year-old insurance market on claims related to several shows scrapped during the band's 2015 world tour. Because it was dismissed with prejudice, the FOO FIGHTERS were barred from re-filing the case on the same claim. Terms were not disclosed.

Some of the FOO FIGHTERS shows were called off after frontman Dave Grohl broke his leg on June 12, 2015, during a show in Gothenberg, Sweden. The injury resulted in the cancellation of seven shows. Three of those dates were mentioned in the suit. After his leg was treated, Grohl went on to perform 53 concerts, mostly while seated on a makeshift "throne" onstage.