ZFS Notes Dismissal of Holocaust Class Action

Zurich Financial Services announced that the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York has dismissed with prejudice the class action brought by several Holocaust victims against member companies of the Zurich Group.

It also noted that “a similar class action brought against European insurers, including Zurich Life, was dismissed in December 2000. Accordingly, there remain no class actions pending against any Zurich company based on events relating to the World War II period.”

The Lawsuit, filed in 1998, also named a number of other European insurance companies as defendants, alleging that they failed to pay the proceeds of life insurance policies issued during the Holocaust period to the rightful beneficiaries. ZFS said that an internal investigation “established that plaintiffs’ allegations could not be substantiated,” and that “these findings have now been accepted by the plaintiffs, who have agreed to the dismissal of their claims against Zurich.”

CEO James J. Schiro commented: “As early as 1996, Zurich created a task force to actively investigate potential claims of Holocaust victims and to address any that were uncovered. The dismissal of this lawsuit confirms that the issue has been fully addressed by Zurich.”