Food spoilage and an off-premises power failure in Northern Spy Food
The restaurant had a power outage and spoiled food, but the court found that the interruption began at the utility and was caused by flooding—an excluded event under that policy. Check where an outage began, what caused it, and the actual utility-service and spoilage wording before assuming food loss is covered.
Record details
| Record | Northern Spy Food Co., LLC v. Tower National Insurance Co., 2016 NY Slip Op 30514(U) |
|---|---|
| Type | Court decision |
| Status | Final public record |
| Jurisdiction | New York |
| Forum | Supreme Court of the State of New York, New York County |
| Docket or order number | Index No. 650461/2014; 2016 NY Slip Op 30514(U) |
| Decision date | |
| Official record | Read the public record |
What the public record says
Northern Spy Food, a Manhattan restaurant, submitted a claim described in the record as “power outage/food spoilage due to windstorm.” The insurer’s investigation reported that the power failure occurred off the premises and was caused by flooding at the utility’s facility. The record includes the property policy, a restaurant endorsement, and the food-spoilage provisions the court was asked to apply.
The dispute was not resolved by the word “outage” alone. The endorsement at issue required that an off-premises power interruption result from a covered cause of loss at specified utility property. The court concluded that the recorded flood cause was excluded under the policy and that the claim did not meet the policy’s requirements.
Disposition
The New York Supreme Court granted the insurer’s summary-judgment motion and dismissed the complaint on March 22, 2016. The opinion is an uncorrected, published trial-court record; this case file reports its disposition, not an unverified claim narrative.
Coverage reading takeaway
This decision does not establish a nationwide answer for refrigerated inventory losses. It illustrates the questions a policy record must answer: where did the interruption begin, what physically caused it, what spoilage and utility-service wording was issued, and which exclusions still apply? Preserve utility notices, temperature records, inventory support, and the endorsement schedule with any outage claim.
Sources
- Primary source: Northern Spy Food Co., LLC v. Tower National Insurance Co. — Public New York court record granting the insurer summary judgment on the reported policy and endorsement terms.