Summary: The tab for hazardous waste cleanup in the United States may total hundreds of billions of dollars during the next several decades. Insurance company representatives have testified repeatedly before Congress that the industry's solvency could be threatened if insurance companies are forced to pay for these cleanups. Faced with mounting numbers of environmental claims and inconsistent state court decisions, property and casualty insurance companies have been in litigation over their liability for cleanup costs and their policyholders' legal expenses. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires companies to disclose environmental liabilities when such information would be crucial to an investor's decision to buy or sell securities or how to vote. Only two of the 16 largest property and casualty companies in 1990 and three in 1992 disclosed dollar amounts related to environmental claims in their annual reports. But five in 1990 and eight in 1991 said that they were involved in litigation over environmental claims. In addition, when requested by SEC, five companies in each year disclosed environmental claims costs and expenses; none of the companies revealed costs that they indicated were material to their financial condition.
