Lloyds Names To Sue Over Regulatory Failure

by Robin Pilgrim, LawAndTax-News.com, London

05 July 2006

It emerged this week that a group of Lloyds of London 'Names' are launching a legal action against the UK Treasury, alleging that it failed to adequately regulate the insurance market during its time overseeing the financial services industry.

According to reports in the UK media, a group of around 1,100 of the investors - who use their own money to provide capital for underwriters to insure risks - is claiming that the Treasury failed to properly implement European legislation which would have cushioned them from the large losses suffered when Lloyds had to pay out following several high profile claims in the 1990s.

Speaking to Reuters with regard to the first part of the action, which will establish the legality of such an attack on the government department, lead litigant Chris Stockwell announced that:

"If we win this procedural part of the case, I would anticipate a great many more Names would join the action. In which case the claim would go up correspondingly."

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