TIME EUROPE
WEB FILE - LLOYD'S OF LONDON
SPECIAL REPORT
From Michael Deeny, Chairman of the Gooda Walker Action Group
Dear Sir
I write as Chairman of the first group of Lloyd's Names to get a judgement against Lloyd's Agents. The $800 million we were awarded is still the largest judgement in British legal history. Your article ignores the fact that we and thousands of other Lloyd's Names went to court, and got judgements against our agents, which led to the Lloyd's Settlement Offer of 1996. This gave us $5,000 million of compensation for our losses. 95% of Lloyd's Names accepted the Settlement Offer.
The $120 billion figure that you quote for Lloyd's losses from asbestosis is demonstrably inaccurate, since less than $4 billion of Lloyd's declared net losses to date can be attributed to asbestosis. The key point that is not clear from your article is that Lloyd's is a market, not a single business. The actual losses inflicted terrible harm on many Names, with tragic consequences. However, the numerous judgements of the English courts, which you ignore, have found that they were the result of gross negligence by many underwriters and agents and serious dishonesty by a few.
The allegation that the Council of Lloyd's deliberately recruited tens of thousands of Names right through the 80s ignores the fact that working members were a minority of the Council. It is an allegation put forward by Names who are seeking a judgement which would enable them to avoid paying a penny of their losses, whether caused by asbestosis or the natural catastrophes that inflicted genuine losses. Their anger against Lloyd's is understandable, but the fact that none of the successful businessmen, whom you name as having lost money at Lloyd's, are involved in the current fraud litigation suggests that there is a third side to a three sided story.
Yours faithfully
Michael Deeny
Chairman, Gooda Walker Action Group
More stories and related links
TIME Europe Home
E-mail us at mail@timeatlantic.com
COPYRIGHT © 2000 TIME INC.
|
|
|
