Public Transit Entities See Increase in Liability Claim Severity, According to Inaugural Study from Aon and APTA

The following are findings from a recent Aon Public Transit Liability Benchmark Analysis.

Public transit systems are seeing an increase in liability claim severity. While public transit liability claim, severity is up 4 percent annually, claim frequency showed an increase of only .5 percent annually. The report breaks down the data, finding that the frequency of bus claims is higher than that of rail claims, while the severity of rail claims is higher than that of bus claims. This is due in part to the fact that buses interact with pedestrians and other road traffic, leaving greater potential for incidents leading to liability claims. The study also found that vehicle on pedestrian claims account for 3 percent of claims, but nearly 40 percent of incurred loss dollars.

Other Noteworthy statistics from the Aon Public Transit Liability Benchmark Analysis:

1. The forecasted 2016 accident year frequency for bus and rail operations combined is .34 percent per 1,000 riders, or one occurrence per 295,879 riders.
2. The forecasted 2016 accident year loss rate for bus and rail operations combined is $39.17 per 1,000 riders, or 3.9 cents per rider.
3. Approximately 72 percent of the claims arose from automobile accidents, with 91 percent of those claims stemming from vehicle on vehicle accidents. Of the claims that did not arise from automobile accidents, approximately 32 percent arose from passengers falling.

“Risk managers are continuously looking for new data to help them better understand the risks their organizations face,” said Mario Richard, associate director and actuary with Aon Global Risk Consulting. “The findings contained in the Aon Public Transit Liability Benchmark Analysis arms them with critical insight to measure, maintain and reduce their liability exposure, and form strategies to help protect their bottom line.”

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