Equitas Slams Lawyer 'Greed' On Asbestos
London Editor
London
An Equitas executive railed against the greed of the plaintiffs bar during a speech here last week where he discussed the recent rapid growth in asbestos claims that he warned could lead to insurer insolvencies.
Although asbestos has not been in widespread use for more than 25 years, "the number of asbestos claims filed in the United States has risen at an unprecedented rate in the last two years," said Paul Jardine, commutations director and chief actuary for Equitas during a presentation at a conference of the London-based Association of Lloyds Members.
He predicted that if the current level of asbestos claims continues unabated, within possibly the next six months some companies could face financial collapse. He was referring to both U.S. and London market insurers as well as U.S. asbestos producers and other manufacturers.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free PropertyCasualty360 Digital Reader
Your access to unlimited PropertyCasualty360 content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
