Asbestos tops US insurer concerns

A full 92% of U.S. property & casualty insurers list asbestos claims as their number-one concern, according to a survey conducted at the Executive Conference for the P&C Industry in New York recently. Standard & Poor’s rating agency released the survey results, which show that the second largest concern is workers’ compensation claims, with 87% of executives noting that the industry is under-reserved for such claims. In third place, 79% of executives noted that reinsurance recoverables are a major issue, followed closely by directors’ and officers’ liability claims.Only 53% of executives said the hard market will continue in 2004, and there was widespread recognition that rates have peaked on property and reinsurance lines.