Equitas Pays $472 million On Honeywell Asbestos

NARCO, which made asbestos impregnated bricks and cement, went bankrupt last year. This February, Honeywell said it had announced definitive agreements or agreements in principle with 236,000 people with asbestos-related claims for death and injury against NARCO.

Honeywell, based in Morristown, N.J., estimated in February that the agreement would result in an after-tax charge of approximately $900 million, net of anticipated insurance recoveries.

The Bendix deal would see Federal Mogul Corp taking the responsibility for liability in current and future asbestos suits. Bendix formerly made asbestos brake linings. Honeywell would also provide Federal-Mogul nearly $2 billion worth of insurance against asbestos claims.

Glenn Brace, Equitas claims director said the Equitas settlement announced today showed a "commitment to resolve claims, including our largest liabilities, at the right price and at the earliest possible opportunity."

The settlement for Equitas provides "finality for reinsured names exposed to claims by Honeywell and its related entities. For Honeywell, it provides certainty as to the amount of claims that will eventually be covered by Lloyds of London names," Mr. Brace said.

The $472 million agreement was achieved without an expensive legal fight, Equitas noted.

Peter Kreindler, general counsel for Honeywell, said the settlement was part of a "comprehensive strategy to resolve all issues related to the NARCO and Bendix cases and is consistent with the assumptions on which our existing reserves are based."