Lloyd's reports major losses from suicide terrorist attacks

LONDON -- Lloyd's of London said Wednesday that the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center would cost it $2.87 billion -- the biggest loss the 314-year-old institution has suffered from a single event.

The suicide attacks in New York were accountable for the almost two-thirds of an overall $4.51 billion loss for 2001 by one of the world's oldest names in insurance.

Lloyd's chief executive Nick Prettejohn described the year as "exceptional by any measure." He said the loss was comparable to the performance of other global property and casualty insurers, despite being large in absolute terms.