Travelers Joins Insurers Griping About More Aggressive Lawsuits

(Bloomberg) -- Insurers are taking aim at the U.S. love of litigation.

“What we’re reflecting in our numbers we would describe as a more active and more aggressive plaintiffs’ bar,” Travelers Cos. Chief Executive Officer Alan Schnitzer said on a conference call Tuesday. The New York-based company reported second-quarter earnings that missed analysts’ estimates.

Travelers joins insurers including American International Group Inc. and Chubb Ltd. in warning about the trend. AIG has said the rise in class-action lawsuits has been driving losses on directors-and-officers policies, while Chubb CEO Evan Greenberg warned in April that excessive litigation is becoming a “tax on corporate America.”

Travelers said a more challenging tort environment has hurt its commercial auto business in particular. Overall, the earnings impact will be a little less than $20 million a quarter, the company said.

Read more about Travelers' second-quarter earnings

Travelers shares slipped 2.4% to $146.13 at 11:39 a.m. in New York, the biggest drop since June 26.

To contact the reporter on this story: Katherine Chiglinsky in New York at kchiglinsky@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Michael J. Moore at mmoore55@bloomberg.net, Steve Dickson, Daniel Taub

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