High profile court cases and the continuing rise globally of the compensation culture is forcing the cost of risk to increase, according to a Lloyd's expert.
Director of worldwide markets at Lloyd's Julian James said premiums were rising because society was more litigious, there has been an increase in exposures for intangible risks such as the internet and the fall-out from September 11.
He also said that litigation was increasingly directed to key individuals being sued, as proxies for the companies they manage.
Digital risks, particularly if a company's employees disseminate computer viruses to clients and suppliers, were forcing premiums up, he said.
