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Topic: Equitas

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	Insurance Scrawl: Lloyd's/Equitas Archives
		Equitas continues to proclaim that it will be able to make payment of claims in full and emphasized that its board never has considered invoking “proportionate cover,” a power purportedly vested in Equitas to undergo a private bankruptcy in which it pays only a percentage of what it believes it owes on claims.
		Finally, Equitas rectified an omission in last year’s report by discussing the impact of the “out” clauses it has included in recent major settlements of asbestos liabilities, in which the settlement with the policyholder is altered or vitiated in the event that, e.g., federal asbestos-liability reform legislation is enacted vel non.
		Equitas reports that a total of £370 million may be returned to it based on various contingencies, principally regarding federal asbestos legislation, but that contingent asset presumably will need be offset against the reinstatement of some policyholder claims.
	www.insurancescrawl.com /archives/lloydsequitas (1664 words)

	2004 Press Releases (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		Glenn Brace, Equitas' Claims Director, said: "We were able to settle them after tough negotiations in which both sides looked very carefully at their assets and liabilities before settlement was reached." Brace added, "We have had some of the most sophisticated businesses in the world on the other side of the negotiation table.
		Equitas, based in London, was established to reinsure and run-off the 1992 and prior years' non-life liabilities of Names, or Underwriters, at Lloyd's of London.
		Equitas actively manages the non-life liabilities arising from policies written by Lloyd's syndicates in 1992 and prior years.
	www.halliburton.com /news/archive/2004/corpnws_012804.jsp (598 words)

	Equitas Broker Rt. (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		Equitas is entitled to the fees, commissions for its investment service as determined in the list of conditions.
		Equitas has the right to bail the positive balance of the Client's account to the extent of the fees, comissions and other charges due and the right to lien over the Client's securities in its care.
		Equitas is obliged to send any and all proposed changes to the Client in writing or make them accessible on the Internet.
	users.westel900.net /equitas/angol/dt.eng.html (716 words)

	[No title]
		Equitas notes that its gross undiscounted asbestos reserves have increased to ₤4.0 billion (increased by ₤296 million).
		Equitas does not explain whether it takes this contingent asset into account in its financial statement or in its analysis that passage of the legislation may result in its insolvency.
		Given that Equitas was itself able to achieve commutations without knowing each particular assured’s allocation of liabilities to particular policies, Equitas cannot equitably contend that it should pay nothing with respect to a policy that is known to cover a certain dollar amount but as to which syndicate-participation information is lacking.
	www.uniset.ca /lloyds_cases/279927_1.htm (637 words)

	Telegraph \| Money
		Equitas, the reinsurance vehicle that assumed liabilities once threatening to overwhelm Lloyd's of London, has pumped another £296m into reserves against asbestos, it revealed yesterday.
		Equitas' accumulated surplus - the pot of funds from which it adds to reserves - fell from £527m to £460m.
		Equitas said the £67m fall in the surplus was less than the £296m that was transferred out for two reasons.
	www.telegraph.co.uk /money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2004/06/09/cnequit09.xml&sSheet=/money/2004/06/09/ixcity.html (468 words)

	Equitas chairman to leave next year
		DAVID Newbigging, the 63-year-old chairman of Equitas, the company into which pre-1992 Lloyd's of London liabilities were reinsured as part of last year's rescue plan, is to step down next year, he said yesterday.
		Equitas, which was the target of attack by embittered Names who claimed that it was not viable, has appointed headhunters Whitehead Mann to find a successor.
		Equitas expects the number of claims to reduce sharply, and to have halved within the first few years.
	www.opinion.telegraph.co.uk /htmlContent.jhtml?html=/archive/1997/10/07/cequ07.html (349 words)

	EQUITAS AND DIRECT ACTIONS
		Equitas was born out of a time of great turmoil in the Lloyd’s marketplace during the late 1980's and early 1990's. A surge of losses (particularly U.S. asbestos and pollution losses), bad management and fraud threatened the solvency of many syndicates. U.S. regulators and clients questioned the security of Lloyd’s.
		Equitas, therefore, may be liable under the Insurance Code for any deceptive settlement practice it might have committed as an adjuster dealing with the insured. We do not view the Insurance Code as immunizing a party against any allegations of deceptive claims-settlement practices simply because the party may also have certain reinsurance duties.
		Thus, although the Names transferred assets to Equitas in exchange for indemnification, the transaction was not the sale of a business. Therefore, as the agreement was one of reinsurance and indemnification, and not one of a successor-in-interest or sale of a business, policyholders do not have contractual privity to sue Equitas directly.
	www.robertmhall.com /articles/Equitas&Direct.htm (1575 words)

	Yahoo! - Lloyds Equitas on target, chairman to go in 1998 (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		Equitas said the amount of reinsurance collected on paid claims in the six months to March 31 -- at 840 million pounds -- was also higher than forecast.
		Equitas said its surplus had risen to 617 million pounds by the end of March from 588 million when it began operating in September 1996.
		Equitas expects total group liabilities to halve over the next three or four years but asbestos, pollution and health claims make up some 40 percent of Equitas' liabilities and could take up to 40 years to run-off.
	www.flains.org /fic/pubs/news/971006Equitas.htm (639 words)

	Mesothelioma Research: Equitas on hook for full asbestos award
		The ruling against Equitas Ltd., which has assumed the liabilities of defunct Lloyd's of London syndicate 992, follows the joint and several liability approach for asbestos claims adopted in the House of Lords in the closely watched Fairchild case last year.
		Equitas paid all but £56,375 ($91,625), arguing that it was only liable for the portion of damages corresponding to the proportion of time it was on Kinkia's risk.
		The ruling against Equitas follows the joint and several liability approach for asbestos claims adopted in the House of Lords in the closely watched Fairchild case last year.
	www.mesostudy.com /mesothelioma-research/16.htm (634 words)

	Former Executives of Senior Financial Consulting Group of Prudential Securities Launches As Equitas Capital Advisors, ... (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		The members of Equitas have chosen Pan-American Financial Advisers, Inc. (PAFA), the largest broker-dealer network in Louisiana, as their broker-dealer affiliate (Bios of Thomas, Bodenheimer, Pettit and Gisclair are attached).
		Equitas, now the largest independent consulting group in Louisiana, will specialize in serving the needs of a range of institutional investors and high net worth individuals.
		Equitas specializes in serving the needs of a range of investors including corporations, foundations, endowments, retirement plans, family offices and high net worth individuals.
	www.panamericanlife.com /news/december-2002/120302_equitas.asp (406 words)

	[No title]
		Equitas officials are blasting a proposed provision of asbestos litigation reform legislation that provides an escape hatch for payments into a claims resolution trust fund for everyone but them.
		Equitas is the runoff vehicle established by Lloyd's of London to reinsure liabilities of Lloyd's syndicates, including asbestos, prior to 1993.
		In its latest comments, Equitas played down reports that it could be stuck with such a massive bill for a contribution to the fund well over $2 billion more than it has set aside to pay such claims.
	www.nationalunderwriter.com /pandc/nuonline/013105/p04equitas_blasts.asp (691 words)

	What Every Insurance Regulator Needs to Know about Equitas, Part V (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		Equitas anticipated that recoveries from over 248,500 reinsurance policies issued by approximately 2,900 reinsurers would reduce its initial reserves by £5.98 billion ($8.492 billion) to a net of £14.93 billion ($21.20 billion).
		Even though Equitas may be in technical compliance with UK accounting standards, it is difficult to accept that the use of discounting produces an accurate image of the magnitude of its unsettled claims.
		Although Equitas reports that it has included a bad debt provision in its reinsurance account for those companies that are currently, or may in the future be, at risk, the amount is not specifically disclosed.
	www.lliarsoflondon.com /reports/whitepaperV.htm (2184 words)

	House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 29 Mar 1996 (pt 3)
		Equitas would be a pure reinsurer, and Lloyd's application does not seek authorisation for it to undertake any subsequent business.
		Equitas will be funded to meet its estimated liabilities and to provide the additional margin of free assets.
		The Equitas proposals will also ensure that the assets to cover these provisions will be fully paid, in contrast to the present position in which some £4 billion of Lloyd's assets is represented by uncalled losses or unpaid cash calls.
	www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk /pa/cm199596/cmhansrd/vo960329/text/60329w03.htm (1342 words)

	RISK - Legal Issues in Insurance Recovery - Howrey Simon Arnold & White, LLP (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		Under this plan, Equitas was created,which, through a series of complex tenebrous transactions, purported to assume the liabilities for all (in excess of 700) pre-1993 open years of account.
		Equitas not only purported to assume the liabilities (at least initially) associated with these open years, but also assumed and was given virtually unfettered discretion with respect to claims handling.
		Equitas decides whether to accept or deny a claim, how much to pay, and when to pay, and settlements of disputed coverage claims are handled almost exclusively by Equitas representatives.
	www.howrey.com /practices/globallit/insurance/risk/summer2002/index.cfm?fuseaction=bridge (1752 words)

	Equitas Broker Rt. (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		I, signed........, as a client of Equitas Broker Rt am fully aware of the risk inherent in trading on the internet and with knowledge that the company is taking all necessary steps to avoid unauthorised entry, state that all damages incurred through the illegal use of my particulars is solely my responsibility.
		Based on information received from the Equitas Broker Rt I am aware that the password I specify is to be known only by myself and I may not under any circumstances make it known to the company or to a third party.
		I acknowledge that the Equitas Broker Rt cannot be held responsible for the coming of the password into illegal hands nor for any damages arising out of this.
	users.westel900.net /equitas/angol/szerzuni.eng.html (1047 words)

	[No title]
		Many years ago Equitas recognized that the tremendous growth in claims from unimpaired individuals threatened to overwhelm the ability of the existing tort system to compensate those who were truly injured by exposure to asbestos.
		As you might imagine, Equitas is keenly aware of the importance of this process, since some of the allocations prepared before the significant expenditures during the last two years showed Equitas making one of, if not the, largest contributions to the fund.
		Blatant Discrimination Against Equitas Equitas is particularly concerned about a provision targeted only at it, that would deny the Commission the ability to grant Equitas meaningful financial hardship or exceptional circumstances adjustments, adjustments that could be granted to all other insurers and reinsurers.
	judiciary.senate.gov /testimony.cfm?id=1350&wit_id=3946 (1825 words)

	Equitas Capital, Inc (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		Equitas Capital, Inc. and its suppliers provide the information and services on this Site to you, the user, conditioned on your acceptance without modification of the terms, conditions, and notices contained herein.
		Equitas Capital, Inc. and its agents assume no responsibility for any consequence relating directly or indirectly to any action or inaction that you take based on the information, services, or other material on this Site.
		Equitas Capital, Inc. may modify this Agreement at any time and such modifications shall be effective immediately upon posting of the modified Agreement.
	www.equitascap.com /term.htm (1027 words)

	Business Insurance
		In particular, Equitas is protected from the possibility of unknown liabilities that may develop as, under the settlement agreements, the policyholders or cedents assume that risk, he said.
		The $10 million difference between the $255 million of net claims Travelers estimates it has with Equitas and the $245 million the company will receive is because the liabilities of some Travelers subsidiaries have been pooled and therefore are not part of the deal, she said.
		However, a spokesman for Equitas rebutted those fears and said that the runoff reinsurer's solvency ratio is higher now than it was when Equitas was originally set up a decade ago.
	www.rmi.gsu.edu /rmi/faculty/klein/RMI_3500/Readings/Other/Equitas_Trend.htm (961 words)

	National Underwriter Hot News
		“However, on the basis of Equitas' past experience, many of these claims are expected to prove to be invalid or overstated,” he said, adding in a letter to individual Lloyd's investors, known as “names,” that the group has settled with a number of significant insureds in the past six months.
		Equitas' investment return dropped to £38 million ($73.6 million), compared with £184 ($356.7 million) last year because “we had less money to invest,” Equitas said, noting that bond values fell slightly while equities maintained their values.
		Equitas reports summary financial information because the group undertakes a comprehensive review of claims liabilities and future reinsurance recoveries only at the end of the financial year, the results of which are reflected in its “Annual Report and Accounts” issued each June.
	www.nationalunderwriter.com /pandc/hotnews/viewPC.asp?article=12_7_04_15_15414.xml&src=5 (512 words)

	The Scotsman - Business - Equitas issues warning over rising costs of asbestos claims
		EQUITAS, the pool of funds set up to pay off old liabilities for the Lloyd’s insurance market, yesterday gave warning that asbestos claims might cost more than it previously expected, as it pumped nearly £400 million into its reserves.
		Equitas was set up in 1996 to soak up the massive liabilities of Lloyd’s syndicates, accumulated largely in the 1980s from natural disasters and pollution.
		Equitas in April paid $472m (£283m) to settle a claim from Honeywell International, the US engineering conglomerate.
	thescotsman.scotsman.com /business.cfm?id=647182003 (368 words)

	Research Papers (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		Equitas' vision of success is resolving claims as soon as possible - bur of course at the right price.
		Of course, my message today - that Equitas is here to resolve claims, not to delay them - requires not only hard work on behalf of Equitas, but also on behalf of most of you today, whether you are a broker, co-insurer, reinsurer or attorney.
		If the intention of Equitas is to negotiate rather than litigate, we must be confident that those around the table are willing to negotiate in good faith and are prepare to get to their real settlement position, rather than maintaining their litigating position.
	www.jtw-re.com /rle2.htm (2353 words)

	What Every Insurance Regulator Needs to Know about Equitas, Part IV (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		Since the inception of Equitas, the first question the courts faced in disputes between policyholders and Equitas was whether the policyholders could sue Equitas at all, or were limited to suing "Underwriter’s at Lloyd’s" as they had done in the past.
		Equitas, however, falls into a regulatory crack, and there is presently little insurance regulators can do to protect their constituents under existing statutes and regulations governing fair claims practices of non-admitted insurers and reinsurers.
		Equitas has attempted to justify its position that Lloyd’s policyholders must perfect their claims against the Names by arguing that it is a "reinsurer" and therefore no privity of contract exists between Equitas and the policyholders.
	www.lliarsoflondon.com /reports/white%20paper4.htm (5073 words)

	FT.com / Comment & analysis / Analysis - Will Equitas come back to haunt the big companies? (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		In a stream of agreements over the past year, a series of mainly US companies has settled billions of dollars worth of claims with Equitas, the company set up in 1996 to save the Lloyd's of London insurance market from meltdown.
		Equitas has now secured agreements with some of the world's biggest companies, including Exxon, Ford, General Electric and Halliburton.
		Most of the companies declare themselves "pleased" with their agreements - as did Halliburton this year after Equitas agreed to pay it £575m ($1.1bn) to resolve all outstanding claims.
	news.ft.com /cms/s/dd08d29e-31bf-11d9-97c0-00000e2511c8.html (187 words)

	Bankruptcy fears over $140bn US asbestos settlement
		Equitas, the reinsurance vehicle created by Lloyd's of London, has raised the prospect of being bankrupted by the settlement of asbestosis liabilities in the US of up to $140bn (£75bn).
		Many of the liabilities were insured at Lloyd's and were moved into Equitas as part of the "Reconstruction and Renewal " reform in 1996.
		Equitas has been settling demands on a piecemeal basis but could be liable for as much as 20 per cent of the payments into the asbestosis fund.
	www.the-claim-solicitors.co.uk /Personal-Injury-News16.htm (551 words)

	Search Archive (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		The ALM continues to believe that the asbestos reserves set by Equitas are reasonable and it accepts the view of the Directors of Equitas, who are independent of Lloyd's, that they have sufficient funds to meet all claims.
		In the same article it was suggested that Equitas might have to pay about 20% of the amount that the insurance industry is expected to have to put into the fund.
		Scott Moser, the Chief Executive of Equitas, told the Financial Times that he expected the company’s remaining share of US asbestos liabilities to be under 5% of the total.
	www.cdnins.com /gopher.php?requesttype=article&requestvalue=ar200501/20050125.002 (541 words)

	Equitas transfers 140 staff to ITNet (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		Equitas is retaining a contract management team of four, made up of a company accountant and three former IT staff.
		Jane Barker, finance director at Equitas, said, "We were very careful about who we chose for the contract management positions to make sure they had the right blend of commercial and IT experience.
		Equitas began work on the outsourcing deal a year ago.
	www.computerweekly.co.uk /Article23791.htm (170 words)

	Telegraph \| Money \| Equitas attacks US asbestos law (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-13)
		Equitas, the reinsurance vehicle set up to rescue Lloyd's of London from towering asbestos liabilities, yesterday blasted a proposed US law that would fail to protect the organisation from going bankrupt.
		All insurers and reinsurers except Equitas would be given the right to either reduce or defer the payment if they could demonstrate it is unfair or would force them into bankruptcy.
		Equitas is excluded because the bill's backers argue that it can go back to the Names whose liabilities it reinsures to claim back any shortfall.
	www.telegraph.co.uk /money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2005/01/24/cnins24.xml&menuId=242&sSheet=/money/2005/01/24/ixcity.html (485 words)

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