Tuesday November 13, 2:31 PM
Insurers face claims from New York crash
By Bill Rigby and Marion Rae
sg.news.yahoo.com
SYDNEY/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Insurers face $200 million in claims from the New York City plane crash, sources told Reuters, still an unwelcome blow for firms struggling with massive losses following the September 11 attacks.
The overall insurance bill from the latest crash was estimated by one analyst at around $1 billion. While insurers would directly cover $200 million in liabilities, the remainder was likely to have been offset with policies taken out with reinsurers.
"An airline coming down is not good, but you're not talking more than $1 billion overall and that's not going to lead to trouble in the reinsurance industry worldwide," a Sydney-based insurance analyst said.
The loss of the plane itself, an American Airlines Airbus A-300 -- would cost insurers about $60 million, industry sources said, with liability claims possibly adding a further $100 million.
The American Airlines jet, bound for the Dominican Republic, hit the Rockaway section of Queens, New York, near John F. Kennedy Airport, shortly after take-off on Monday morning. All 260 on board are feared dead. |
