TRENDS IN ASBESTOS LIABILITY TUGGING AT THE PURSE STRINGS OF FINANCIAL LENDERS
As Claims and Settlement Costs Rise, Fitch IBCA's Special Report Identifies Those Who Might Not Get a Second Look from Creditors

icAendicn increase in Chapter 11 filings by several of the traditional asbestos defendants has heightened concerns over the creditworthiness of all companies with asbestos liability, according to a report issued in February by Fitch IBCA.

Recently, financial analysts at Fitch, an international credit rating and research agency, released a study identifying trends it believes will aid analysts, lenders and stockholders draw distinctions between companies with asbestos liability.

Statistics released by the agency show that the number of claims filed against traditional asbestos defendants began a substantial annual increase beginning three years ago, and that the average cost of settling these …