- Practice Areas
- Publication Type
- Resources
- Practice Areas
- Publication Type
- Resources
- Home/Publications/Liability Risk and Insurance
Liability Excess-of-Loss Reinsurance
12 October • Lloyd’s • An introduction to liability and casualty business and the use of excess-of-loss reinsurance in protecting such accounts • An analysis of the legal principles, practice, and wording, as well as looking..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Outgoing ombudsman
Julian Farrand, formerly the lively and controversial insurance ombudsman and now retiring from seven years as pensions ombudsman, has taken a final swipe at lawyers who use ‘an avalanche of paper’ to confuse claimants and take every..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
HIH loss estimates increase
New information from liquidator KPMG suggests the losses of failed Australian insurer HIH, estimated at US$2.1bn in May, could reach US$2.8bn.
The collapse of HIH in Hong Kong, with liabilities of US$134mn, has left 27,000 policyholders –..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
ALM expects Lloyd’s return to profit in 2002
The latest report of the Association of Lloyd’s Members (ALM), prepared in conjunction with A M Best, expects improving market conditions to bring Lloyd’s back into profit in 2002 following five bad years.
Separately, Moody’s has..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Marlborough syndicate 1047
After major restructuring following withdrawal of capital provider CGNU from the London market and acquisition (through a subsidiary) by Berkshire Hathaway, two Marlborough syndicates remain in business this year. Syndicate 1861, writing marine..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
E&O leads to downgrade for Limit
Rating agency Moody’s has reduced the performance rating of syndicate 456, Limit Underwriting, from B average to C below average (under review, direction uncertain).
This follows a loss forecast change for the 1999 year of account from 2.5% to..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Hi-tech stock fall triggers claims
Increasing claims from (mostly US) shareholders who suffered substantial losses from the sudden crash of US hi-tech stock threaten widespread triggering of directors’ and officers’ (D&O) and professional indemnity cover. Insureds..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Construction rates rise sharply
The poor safety record of the building industry and increasing compensation awards are pushing up employers’ liability (EL) premiums for the construction industry.
The collapse of Independent Insurance, which wrote a substantial share of..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Solicitors’ PI renewals
Following the first renewal period after the shift of solicitors’ professional indemnity (PI) cover from the Solicitors’ Indemnity Fund to the open market, Alexander Forbes has reported an overall 15% premium increase to £180mn. But..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Mortgage lenders may refund
A ruling by an adjudicator to the Financial Ombudsman against the Halifax may lead to significant refunds from mortgage lenders to their variable rate borrowers. Complaints were brought against Halifax, Nationwide and HSBC by a number of customers..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Aid for airlines
With the near-immediate cancellation of war risk cover for third-party liability and property damage by the majority of leading aviation insurers, and writeback limited to US$50mn at sky-high prices, many European airlines are prepared to cancel..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Marine liability
A growing number of classification societies are warning against the adoption of unlimited liability. They have criticised the recent acceptance by Bureau Veritas and the American Bureau of Shipping of unlimited liability.
This is developing into a..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
TWA loses coverage dispute
The Missouri Court of Appeals has ruled in favour of Lloyd’s and London market insurers that Trans World Airlines (TWA) is not entitled to cover for pollution found in the 1980s at the Kansas City maintenance base. TWA, ordered to clean up at..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Mould death suit
A wrongful death suit has been filed against the owners of a housing complex in east-side Manhattan following three deaths attributed to mould-related problems. The New York Post
of 20 August 2001 reports that the owners refused to take remedial..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
‘Threat to Equitas’
The annual meeting of Equitas was dominated by concern over increased asbestos filings. Claims director Scott Moser characterised this as ‘the most serious threat to Equitas’s financial wellbeing’. Claims increased by 33% in 1999..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Awards and settlements
Workplace stress award of £140,000
damages to former social worker, now aged 56 and unable to work through depression. After she complained about bad management practice at a residential home for the elderly, she was catapulted into running it..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Response
AIG, the world’s largest insurer, has called on the US government to set up a claims tribunal to oversee the resolution of insurance issues.
Meetings with treasury officials are under way, seeking the establishment of a forum with federal..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
War or terrorism?
Terrorism is seldom excluded from basic cover by US primary insurers, but with the reverse position in Europe glitches could occur in non-US-based reinsurance.
US insurers have stated they will not invoke ‘act of war’ exclusions, as has..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
EU pharma legislation
Comprehensive reform of pharmaceutical legislation is put forward by the EU Commission, with the objectives of providing a high level of health protection to individuals and facing the challenges of globalisation.
Proposals include reinforcement of..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Advisory investigator
Rosemary Radcliffe has been appointed as the new independent investigator into complaints about the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
Funded by the FSA and despite lacking the power to enforce compensation but relying on compliance with..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Claims code reviewed
Six months after implementation, the Association of British Insurers has checked the efficacy of the general insurers’ claims code.
Focusing on motor claims, it found 85% of policyholders were satisfied with the handling of their claims. The..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
More legal bills cut
Continuing a three-year trend, legal bills presented for taxation (court assessment of reasonableness) were on average cut by almost half last year. Those considered in Chancery were cut from £33mn to £18mn, and in the Queen’s Bench..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Payments into court
The Lord Chancellor’s Department has issued a consultation document proposing changes to the system of settlement payments into court.
Payment-in is currently used in support of a settlement offer but this is seen as cumbersome.
But the..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
NFU targeted for demutualisation?
Attempts are being made to push NFU Mutual towards demutualisation. With a potential £3bn stockmarket listing and £8.5bn worth of assets, pressure groups claim a £1bn surplus should be shared with farmers rather than, as alleged, used..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Independent Insurance runoff
PricewaterhouseCoopers, provisional liquidator for Independent Insurance, has set up runoff company Aurora Corporate Services. It will employ 450 staff including all those currently working for Independent.
It emerges that, rather than the typical..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
ATE premium hike
Before appropriate premiums for different risk levels of after-the-event (ATE) insurance have been tested in court (as per the Callery
decision), premiums are creeping up.
The first move came from Litigation Protection, following actuarial review...
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Claims Direct name survives
With the completion of a fairly complex piece-by-piece deal with Simon Ware-Lane, Claims Direct founders Tony Sullman and Colin Poole are looking for ‘new opportunities’ to launch a fresh joint venture.
Their disengagement is not as yet..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Equitable Life under inquiry
The government’s late decision to launch an independent inquiry, headed by commercial judge Lord Penrose and expected to last at least a year, will do little for Equitable’s current problems.
The inquiry’s remit includes a look at..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
IFAs slow to pay
A progress report from the Financial Services Authority (FSA) has criticised independent financial advisers (IFAs) as the worst culprits in delaying payments to victims of personal pensions misselling. Of compensation estimated at £13.5bn, only..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
More pension problems?
A report produced for the Association of British Insurers (ABI) by Greig Middleton and Gerrard/Capel Cure Sharp highlights ‘inherent flaws’ in with-profits funds. These managed funds, worth £320bn, affect more than half of life..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
No setoff of windfalls
Needler Financial Services and its insurer Collegiate Insurance Services have dropped plans to appeal a ruling that windfalls cannot be offset against compensation for misselling of pensions. Already liable for the costs of pensioner Ronald..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Auditors’ duty: no change
The final report of the Company Law Steering Group has stepped back from its earlier stance of widening auditors’ duty of care beyond that laid down in Caparo, in its recommendations to the Secretary of State for Trade & Industry...
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
RSI/keyboard link queried
Even up to seven hours a day of keyboard typing does not increase risk of carpel tunnel syndrome, suggests research led by Clarke Stevens at the Mayo Clinic, Arizona. Where problems were found, the majority were very mild. Of 257 subjects, only 10%..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Indirect discrimination regulations
The Sex Discrimination (Indirect Discrimination and Burden of Proof) Regulations 2001 comes into force in October this year, extending the scope of existing legislation to cover noncontractual discriminatory practices and reversing the burden of..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Gay discrimination not covered
The Court of Appeal has dismissed the sex discrimination case of lesbian teacher Shirley Pearce, who claimed sexual harassment by pupils forced her to retire after 20 years teaching at the same school. She received no help when she complained to the..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Equal Opportunities Commission guidance
The Equal Opportunities Commission has issued a new guide on good practice for employers advising on how best to deal with sexual harassment in the workplace. The guide emphasises the need for employers to: adopt a clear policy that harassment will..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
MoD compensation proposals
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) is to put forward proposals for a tariff-based, lump-sum scheme of compensation for injured service personnel. It is unclear as to the circumstances such claims may be able to go to the civil courts.
In a separate..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Tribunal review seeks less lawyer involvement
Sir Andrew Leggatt’s review of tribunals includes recommendations that the role of lawyers be reduced and funding be limited to representation in exceptional circumstances of legal complexity, or physical or mental incapacity. He believes..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
TUPE consultation paper
In the leadup to implementation of the 1998 revised Acquired Rights Directive, a consultation paper has been issued on changes to the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations (TUPE).
It aims to make the process of business..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
School trip liabilities
The UK Ministry of Education has promised publication of a handbook before the end of the year clarifying the responsibilities and liabilities of teachers and schools in relation to school trips. Teachers’ union NASUWT is currently refusing to..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Mobile distraction
Research at the University of Utah shows drivers using mobile phones overshoot red lights and react more slowly to obstacles to a greater extent than when performing other tasks such as changing radio stations or listening to the radio. The similar..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
All targets missed
The annual report of London Underground shows failure to meet every performance target set by the government – including those of safety and security (for passengers and staff). The report covers the first year of London Underground operating..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Hatfield file to CPS
British Transport Police have sent the file on the Hatfield train crash, in which four people died last October, to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
Railtrack and Balfour Beatty, the contractor responsible for maintenance of the track, are named..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Cabin heater led to ski train fire
A 10-month investigation shows that a faulty and inappropriate heater in the driver’s cabin caused the fire that led to 155 deaths last November in a funicular train in the Kaprun tunnel, Austria. This was through overheating of hydraulic..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Payments to nuclear weapons workers
The US Department of Labor has commenced payments to workers exposed to radiation while working at nuclear weapons facilities during the Cold War. Up to 4,000 workers can expect cash payments of US$150,000 along with coverage of medical expenses...
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Poor air quality a health risk
The poor quality of air in passenger aircraft, with oxygen concentrations sometimes as low as 79% of the US legal requirement, has been highlighted by Prof Martin Hocking of the University of Victoria in Canada.
Risks from lack of oxygen are joined..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
CAA considers seating space
The Civil Aviation Authority is to consider a report on cramped seats in passenger aircraft, to the extent that it is often impossible for passengers to adopt the recommended ‘brace’ position in an emergency and slowing down any ground..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Cessna verdict from 1989
A jury verdict of US$480mn (US$400mn punitive) has been brought against Cessna Aircraft for severe injuries to three passengers in a Cessna 185 that crashed near Pensacola, Florida in 1989.
The plaintiffs, two of whom were seriously burned and the..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Gulf Air settles with Egyptians
..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Emotional trauma as physical injury
As the crew struggled to effect an emergency landing of Delta Air Lines jet MD-11 at Dayton, Ohio in 1996, a flight attendant added to passenger terror by saying: ‘We’re all going to die!’
Two years after a judge ruled Kathy Weaver..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Gard backs Tampa
Norway-based P&I club Gard has assured full protection, including costs related to the 438 refugees rescued from a sinking boat, to the Tampa
. Carrying containers for Wallemius Wilhelmsen, the vessel responded to an Australian coastguard call..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Exxon Valdez final payment?
Twelve years after the massive Exxon Valdez oil spill, the last scheduled payment has been made – US$70mn of the US$1.025bn civil and criminal settlement reached in 1991, at that time the biggest ever environmental settlement.
But..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Lead poisoning
Lead problems continue to surface in the US, not only from paint but literally surfacing from the soil.
Despite being subject to one of the toughest cleanup plans negotiated with the Environmental Protection Agency, annual testing shows 15% of..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Global warming suit?
Environmental groups are working on a new legal strategy to sue the US, UK and other governments for causing pollution leading to global warming and damage from associated rising sea levels. The United Nations has placed the annual losses related to..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
More environmental prosecutions?
A change in the Environment Agency’s prosecution policy was recently announced. Companies will be prosecuted for minor incident where there is a history of noncompliance or question of effective management. Previously minor incidents were only..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Pesticide in British water sources
A report from Eureau, the body representing water companies across Europe, finds pesticide levels in British water sources among the highest in Europe. Of British rivers and lakes, 77% regularly exceed the EU standard of 0.1 microgramme pesticide..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Landfill sites affect health?
A government-sponsored study of the incidence of birth defects in babies born within 2km of landfill sites shows some anomalies but provides no conclusions. Commenting on the study carried out by the Small Areas Statistics Unit at Imperial College,..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Dumping not an accident
The New Hampshire Supreme Court, in Energynorth Natural Gas Inc v Continental Insurance Co,
held that the dumping of tar and other hazardous waste on site was neither an ‘accident’ nor an ‘occurrence’. The dumping was..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Largest securities arbitration award
Former broker Stephen Sawtelle has been awarded US$27.6mn, of which US$25mn is punitive damages, to settle a dispute with Waddell & Reed.
The three-judge panel at the National Association of Securities Dealers made the punitive award because..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
DuPont not racketeering
In appealing a damages hike to US$88.5mn on grounds of racketeering (under the RICO Act) in a Benlate claim by two Costa Rican nurseries, DuPont will be heartened by a ruling by judge Alan Gold of the Federal District Court in Miami. In another..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Accidents down, workplace homicides up
Statistics from the US Bureau of Labor show a 2% fall in workplace accidents in 2000 although those among Hispanic workers rose sharply. The total number of deaths was 5,915, mostly in the construction industry. During the same period job-related..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Homeowners’ policy covers manslaughter
The California Supreme Court has ruled Safeco Insurance’s homeowners’ policy covers involuntary manslaughter even though excluding ‘illegal acts’. The court held that the clause on ‘illegal acts’ was ambiguous and..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Another clearance for gun makers
The California Supreme Court has ruled gun manufacturer Navegar was not liable for a shooting spree (eight dead, six injured) by Gian Ferri. The decision was based largely on a 1983 state law barring liability against the gun industry. It had been..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
30% of population suffer abnormalities
A study released in August shows 30% of the population of Libby, Montana suffer abnormalities of some sort. More than 200 former workers in the Zonolite Mountain vermiculite mine have died and many others are ill. Last year there were 50,000..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Wall texture verdict
A Texas jury has awarded 47-year-old Alfredo Hernandez, now suffering from mesothelioma, US$55.5mn (of which US$15mn is punitive) damages against Kelly-Moore Paint.
The former construction worker alleged joint compound and wall texture products..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
USG progress
While in chapter 11 voluntary bankruptcy to manage the costs of asbestos litigation, USG’s second-quarter 2001 net sales fell by 19% to US$806mn. A drop in demand has led to a shortfall for the half-year from US$1,984mn in 2000 to US$1,632mn..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Goodrich to protect aerospace arm
Goodrich Corporation is to split into two publicly traded companies, one concentrating on Goodrich’s engineered products and the other on its aerospace business. This is to protect the latter from the engineered products unit’s..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Warship fitters exposed to asbestos
Devonport Management, refitter of warships and submarines, pleaded guilty to exposing up to 24 subcontractors to asbestos dust, failing in its duty of care under the Health & Safety Act. Plymouth magistrates committed the case to Crown Court..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Federal-Mogul claims increase
During its loss-making second quarter, Federal-Mogul made US$82mn asbestos-related payments and the volume of new claims continues to rise. The recent bankruptcies of other codefendant companies in asbestos litigation and a decrease in voluntary..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Armstrong: an injury but not property debtor?
In a recent filing, Armstrong World Industries asked judge Joseph Farnan of the US District Court in Wilmington to vacate the US trustee’s appointment of a committee representing those with asbestos-related property damage claims against the..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
RAND Institute forecasts more claims
A new study by the RAND Institute for Civil Justice (RICJ) forecasts a total of more than a million asbestos injury claims to be filed from among the estimated 27mn people exposed to asbestos in the workplace from the 1940s onwards.
New targets, as..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Tobacco update
A class action seeking medical tests
for 250,000 symptomless West Virginian smokers has commenced trial for the second time. The first attempt was declared a mistrial because plaintiff witnesses made forbidden references to nicotine and..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
BSE, CJD and OPs
A ‘sustained pattern’ of increase in vCJD deaths
was reported by Prof James Ironside of the National CJD Surveillance Unit. vCJD has increased year on year, with 22 cases diagnosed as of the end of August this year, 28 in the whole of..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Product liability decisions in France
The June 2001 issue of Lovells’ European Product Liability Review
notes some recent product liability decisions in France. Brief summaries of three of these follow:
Award of damages for breach of preventive provision, where a baby suffered..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Giveaway toy recalls
The New York Times
of 16 August 2001 reported an increase in recalls of toys given away by fast-food outlets. Detailed comparisons of toy distribution by these outlets and the toy industry show food outlets account for one-third of all toy..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Interpreting scientific literature
A useful note on aspects of assessment and interpretation of scientific literature, in relation to product liability claims, appears in the June 2001 issue of law firm Lovells’ European Product Liability Review
.
Lovells Science Unit •..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
GM trials, and guidelines
The report Crops on Trial
from the government’s advisory body, the Agriculture & Environment Biotechnology Commission, has criticised the way genetically modified (GM) crop trials are carried out.
In particular it cites a failure to..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Ford seeks to settle ignition litigation
Ford is seeking judicial approval of settlement of long-running litigation over faulty ignition switches in 22mn vehicles built between 1983 and 1995, of which about 15mn are still on the road. The fault caused vehicles to stall while in use,..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Ford/Firestone in Jacksonville
The first two of a tranche of wrongful death suits against Ford and Firestone, originating in Jacksonville, are near to settlement. Both come from the families of children killed in different tyre separations on Ford Explorers.
The family of..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Firestone still freewheeling
Settlement during jury deliberations of the Rodriguez suit for an undisclosed amount – believed to be in the region of US$7.5mn – leaves users of Ford Explorers with Firestone tyres with unanswered questions. This first of 400 suits..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Telecoms regulation and guidance
Oftel has put forward proposals for new conditions to telecoms operators’ licences for the control of electromagnetic interference. Because of concerns that technologies using radio frequencies to transmit high-speed data can interfere with..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Mobile phones: brain tumour study
The results of a large-scale study into the relationship between brain tumours and the use of mobile phones was reported at the British Association Festival of Science.
Prof Lennart Hardell of Örebro University in Sweden studied 1,617 patients..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Date of HIV knowledge in Italy
A ruling of the Court of Rome has affirmed the right to compensation of haemophiliacs infected with HIV, HBV and HCV viruses contracted through blood products or injections in the 1980s and 1990s.
The ruling also sets the date at which the Ministry..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Doctors exonerated
All but one of around 16 doctors referred to the General Medical Council (GMC) by chief medical officer Liam Donaldson in the wake of the Alder Hey retained organ scandal have been cleared of wrongdoing.
Three of four managers were also cleared...
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Warning on research standards
Thirteen leading medical journals, including The Lancet
and its equivalents in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Denmark and the Netherlands, have issued simultaneous warnings on the status of clinical trials on behalf of pharmaceutical..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Anaesthetic machines lack safety device
Replies to a questionnaire sent to colleagues throughout the UK by anaesthetists Tim Meek and David Saunders indicate almost one-third of machines in British hospitals lack a safety device to prevent delivery of fatal mixtures, the British Medical..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Clinical negligence reform
As part of the response to the Bristol Inquiry, chief medical officer Liam Donaldson has published proposals for reform of clinical negligence procedures. Comment is invited up to 10 October, with a white paper promised for early next year.
Issues..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Multivaccine risk
A study of childhood vaccines by researchers at Washington University in Seattle, based on risk analysis of 680,000 children, was published in the New England Journal of Medicine
of 30 August 2001. The triple DTP (diphtheria, tetanus and whooping..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Paxil class action
A class action against Glaxo SmithKline will be heard in Los Angeles Superior Court on behalf of 35 people claiming serious withdrawal symptoms when they stopped using antidepressant Paxil (Seroxat in the UK). They claim lack of warning of the..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Sulzer seeks innovative settlement
As a Texas court prepares to pass judgment on the first suits arising from replacement of painful artificial hips, Sulzer Medica – which has potentially inadequate insurance cover for the estimated 4,000 claimant total – is seeking an..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Bayer targeted for Baycol/Lipobay claims
German pharmaceutical giant Bayer is facing a number of fatality claims in the US arising from the use of cholesterol-lowering drug Baycol, or Lipobay, withdrawn on 8 August this year.
The withdrawal followed increasing reports of potentially fatal..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Paraglider as aircraft? Student as passenger?
It was held that a paraglider was not an aircraft, nor was a trainee flying tandem with her instructor a passenger, her claim therefore not falling within the scope of schedule 1 of the Carriage by Air Acts and thus not statute barred. The..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Rehearing does not impinge on fair trial
Abandonment of proceedings by reason of apparent bias followed by rehearing is no breach of the right to a fair trial and therefore the Lord Chancellor is not liable for costs.
In re Medicaments and Related Classes of Goods (No 4) • Court of..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Employment after end of job
Where an employee’s job came to an end but he continued working for the same employer on a different basis, the employee is deemed to have accepted the repudiation of his old contract but the relationship of employment continued. This in..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Director’s account of profits
Under section 727(1) of the Companies Act the court may exercise discretion to protect a director from liability for honest and reasonable breaches of duty. This applies to both damages or an order to account for profits, both seen as similar in..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Liability for negligent legal advice
A 12-year-old pedestrian was severely injured when hit by a car. Her solicitor and counsel recommended she accept a ‘nuisance value’ sum of £50,000 as, although her claim could be worth £500,000, there was no reasonable..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Extent of Product Liability Directive
A case where fluid used on a donated kidney made it unusable for transplant has raised questions of liability. Claims were made against the operating hospital and the hospital where the fluid was prepared, both owned by Amtskommune.
Referred by a..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Serbs sue NATO
Five Serbian civilians are taking innovative action against NATO for the bombing of a Belgrade TV station in 1999, arguing NATO was in breach of human rights in bombing a media target they knew was occupied by civilians.
The families of four media..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
HRA damages: asylum seekers’ detention
The government is to appeal the High Court ruling that detention of asylum seekers at Oakington is a breach of their human rights. Formal declaration has been suspended until 5 October to prevent an immediate rush of claims.
Ruling on a claim by..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Porton Down file to CPS
After a two-year investigation, Wiltshire police are to hand the Porton Down file to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
The police were investigating allegations that Ministry of Defence (MoD) scientists carried out germ warfare tests on..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
National Express to sue CGNU
Train and bus operator National Express is to sue insurer CGNU, claiming indemnity for substantial damages under a business interruptions policy, for loss of revenue following the Hatfield rail crash.
It argues that revenue at the time of the crash..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Operator claims against Railtrack possible
Further train operator compensation claims against Railtrack are likely, with the decision to delay west coast mainline signal upgrades near Manchester until after the Commonwealth Games next year.
The reason given for the delay is to avoid any..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Fire engine faults
Following settlement of almost £1mn with Barry Langstone (seriously injured when a door opened and he fell from a fire engine answering an emergency call), the London Fire Authority has lodged a claim against the vehicle manufacturers.
Named..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
ATE finetuning at appeal
With Norwich Union launching a petition for leave to appeal findings on after-the-event (ATE) insurance, the Court of Appeal has started hearings on a related issue in Sarwar v Alam.
This case addresses the issue of whether the unsuccessful side..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Ground casualties
Latest news appears to confirm that the US government will finance at least basic compensation for the families of the more than 5,000 dead, many workers in the twin towers and likely to be ‘high-worth’ individuals.
After Lockerbie and..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Where should the buck stop?
Should the buck stop with the airlines, airports, airport security firms (and their own and other insurers) or the US government? Speedy action by the White House and Congress appears to absolve American Airlines and United Airlines from liability..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Range of loss and claims
While general liability appears to hold key place, the wide range of other coverage (see box below) and the complexity and scope of events could give rise to claims not yet anticipated. For example, a substantial number of trauma claims from..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Single or multiple event?
..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001
Unprecedented!
The destruction of the World Trade Center, and the associated damage and death, raise issues for the insurance world that, for once, can truly be described as ‘unprecedented’.
Analysts forecast the ‘largest insured losses..
Online Published Date:
01 October 2001
Appeared in issue:
135 - 01 October 2001