AM BestTV: U.S. Property/Casualty Industry Funded 90% of $146 Billion in A&E Exposures, Says AM Best Director

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

OLDWICK - NOVEMBER 20, 2019 11:55 AM (EST)
In this ^AMBestTV episode, AM Best Director Brian O’Larte says the U.S. property/casualty insurance industry has funded about 90% of the estimated $146 billion in net U.S. asbestos and environmental (A&E) losses. Click on http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=aande1119 to view the entire program.

The industry has paid out $16.8 billion in A&E claims over the past five years while incurring $12 billion in losses. O’Larte highlighted A&E developments in 2018, noting the larger impact asbestos continues to have.

“In 2018, asbestos paid out $2.6 billion and only incurred $1.4 billion,” said O’Larte. “Over more than five years, payments have been a lot larger than incurred. On five years alone, asbestos paid out $14 billion compared to only $9 billion in incurred.”

O’Larte also addressed the potential impact of evolving litigation regarding talcum baby powder.

“That is a real unknown. Johnson & Johnson has claimed there was no asbestos in its baby powder. However, if there were, it would probably put pressure on insurers. It is a huge unknown in the industry. Some of the large players still do not think there is any kind of action against them, but only time will tell. No one is sure how it is going to play out in the courts.”

To access a copy of this market segment report, titled, “Asbestos and Environmental Payouts Continue to Outpace Incurred Losses,” visit http://www3.ambest.com/bestweek/purchase.asp?record_code=290972 .

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^AM BestTV covers exclusive AM Best and insurance industry information and reports, targeted topics and key developments in the insurance, reinsurance and related sectors daily. Sign up for alerts of episodes at http://www.ambest.com/multimedia/ambtvsignup.html . View ^AM BestTV episodes at http://www.ambest.tv .

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data provider specializing in the insurance industry. The company does business in more than 100 countries. Headquartered in Oldwick, NJ, AM Best has offices in cities around the world, including London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.