NOTE 19. COMMITMENTS, GUARANTEES, PRODUCT WARRANTIES AND OTHER LOSS CONTINGENCIES

COMMITMENTS

The GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS) business in GE Capital has placed multiple-year orders for various Boeing, Airbus and other aircraft manufacturers with list prices approximating $36,506 million and secondary orders with airlines for used aircraft of approximately $3,271 million at March 31, 2018. In our Aviation segment, we have committed to provide financing assistance of $1,937 million of future customer acquisitions of aircraft equipped with our engines.

GUARANTEES

Our guarantees are provided in the ordinary course of business. We underwrite these guarantees considering economic, liquidity and credit risk of the counterparty. We believe that the likelihood is remote that any such arrangements could have a significant adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations or liquidity. We record liabilities for guarantees at estimated fair value, generally the amount of the premium received, or if we do not receive a premium, the amount based on appraisal, observed market values or discounted cash flows. Any associated expected recoveries from third parties are recorded as other receivables, not netted against the liabilities.

At March 31, 2018, we were committed under the following guarantee arrangements beyond those provided on behalf of VIEs. See Note 18.

Credit Support. We have provided $1,667 million of credit support on behalf of certain customers or associated companies, predominantly joint ventures and partnerships, using arrangements such as standby letters of credit and performance guarantees. These arrangements enable these customers and associated companies to execute transactions or obtain desired financing arrangements with third parties. Should the customer or associated company fail to perform under the terms of the transaction or financing arrangement, we would be required to perform on their behalf. Under most such arrangements, our guarantee is secured, usually by the asset being purchased or financed, or possibly by certain other assets of the customer or associated company. The length of these credit support arrangements parallels the length of the related financing arrangements or transactions. The liability for such credit support was $80 million at March 31, 2018.

Indemnification Agreements – Continuing Operations. We have agreements that require us to fund up to $241 million at March 31, 2018 under residual value guarantees on a variety of leased equipment. Under most of our residual value guarantees, our commitment is secured by the leased asset. The liability for these indemnification agreements was $7 million at March 31, 2018.

At March 31, 2018, we also had $1,852 million of other indemnification commitments, substantially all of which relate to representations and warranties in sales of businesses or assets. The liability for these indemnification commitments was $260 million at March 31, 2018.

Indemnification Agreements – Discontinued Operations. At March 31, 2018, we provided specific indemnifications to buyers of GE Capital’s assets that, in the aggregate, represent substantially all of the maximum potential claim of $2,786 million.The majority of these indemnifications relate to the sale of businesses and assets under the GE Capital Exit Plan. We have recorded related liabilities of $301 million, which incorporates our evaluation of risk and the likelihood of making payments under the indemnities. The recognized liabilities represent the estimated fair value of the indemnities when issued as adjusted for any subsequent probable and estimable losses. In addition, in connection with the 2015 public offering and sale of Synchrony Financial, GE Capital indemnified Synchrony Financial and its directors, officers, and employees against the liabilities of GECC's businesses other than historical liabilities of the businesses that are part of Synchrony Financial's ongoing operations.

Contingent Consideration. These are agreements to provide additional consideration to a buyer or seller in a business combination if contractually specified conditions related to the acquisition or disposition are achieved. Amount of contingent consideration was insignificant at March 31, 2018.

PRODUCT WARRANTIES

We provide for estimated product warranty expenses when we sell the related products. Because warranty estimates are forecasts that are based on the best available information – mostly historical claims experience – claims costs may differ from amounts provided. An analysis of changes in the liability for product warranties follows.



	Three months ended March 31
(In millions)	2018			2017

Balance at January 1	$	2,348		$	1,929
Current-year provisions	245			155
Expenditures	(237		)	(210		)
Other changes(a)	149			17
Balance as of March 31	$	2,505		$	1,891

(a) Primarily includes effect of currency exchange and acquisitions.

OTHER LOSS CONTINGENCIES

LEGAL MATTERS

WMC. During the fourth quarter of 2007, we completed the sale of WMC, our U.S. mortgage business. WMC substantially discontinued all new loan originations by the second quarter of 2007, and was never a loan servicer. In connection with the sale, WMC retained certain representation and warranty obligations related to loans sold to third parties prior to the disposal of the business and contractual obligations to repurchase previously sold loans that had an early payment default. All claims received by WMC for early payment default have either been resolved or are no longer being pursued.

The remaining active claims have been brought by securitization trustees or administrators seeking recovery from WMC for alleged breaches of representations and warranties on mortgage loans that serve as collateral for residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). At March 31, 2018, such claims consisted of $298 million of individual claims generally submitted before the filing of a lawsuit (compared to $462 million at December 31, 2017) and $3,107 million of additional claims asserted against WMC in litigation without making a prior claim (Litigation Claims) (compared to $3,198 million at December 31, 2017). The total amount of these claims, $3,404 million, reflects the purchase price or unpaid principal balances of the loans at the time of purchase and does not give effect to pay downs or potential recoveries based upon the underlying collateral, which in many cases are substantial, nor to accrued interest or fees. WMC believes that repurchase claims brought based upon representations and warranties made more than six years before WMC was notified of the claim would be disallowed in legal proceedings under applicable law and the June 11, 2015 decision of the New York Court of Appeals in ACE Securities Corp. v. DB Structured Products, Inc., on the statute of limitations period governing such claims.

Reserves related to repurchase claims made against WMC were $342 million at March 31, 2018, reflecting a net decrease to reserves in the three months ended March 31, 2018 of $74 million due to settlements. The reserve estimate takes into account recent settlement activity and is based upon WMC’s evaluation of the remaining exposures as a percentage of estimated lifetime mortgage loan losses within the pool of loans supporting each securitization for which timely claims have been asserted in litigation against WMC. Settlements in prior periods reduced WMC’s exposure on claims asserted in certain securitizations and the claim amounts reported above give effect to these settlements. During the first quarter of 2018, we also recorded a reserve of $1,500 million in connection with the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) ongoing investigation regarding potential violations of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 (FIRREA) by WMC and GE Capital discussed in Legal Proceedings.



ROLLFORWARD OF THE RESERVE RELATED TO REPURCHASE CLAIMS

	Three months ended March 31
(In millions)	2018			2017

Balance, beginning of period	$	416		$	626
Provision	—			—
Claim resolutions / rescissions	(74		)	—
Balance, end of period	$	342		$	626

Given the significant litigation activity and WMC’s continuing efforts to resolve the lawsuits involving claims made against WMC, it is difficult to assess whether future losses will be consistent with WMC’s past experience. Adverse changes to WMC’s assumptions supporting the reserve may result in an increase to these reserves. WMC estimates a range of reasonably possible loss from $0 to approximately $500 million over its recorded reserve at March 31, 2018. This estimate involves significant judgment and may not reflect the range of uncertainties and unpredictable outcomes inherent in litigation, including the matters discussed in Legal Proceedings and potential changes in WMC’s legal strategy. This estimated range of reasonably possible loss excludes any possible loss associated with an adverse court decision on the applicable statute of limitations, as well as any additional loss beyond the amount of our current reserve for the FIRREA investigation, as we are unable at this time to develop such a meaningful estimate. With respect to the FIRREA investigation, this inability to develop a meaningful estimate of any additional loss beyond the amount of our current reserve reflects, among other factors, the wide variety and broad range of penalties and other sanctions incurred by various financial institutions in proceedings and settlements involving claims made under FIRREA by the DOJ, and the possibility WMC will file for bankruptcy in the event of a finding of liability in the TMI case discussed in Legal Proceedings. It is possible, however, that the ultimate liability of GE Capital and/or WMC could be higher than our current reserve if a negotiated settlement of the FIRREA investigation cannot be reached at a level commensurate with the reserve, or if we face adverse litigation outcomes if a negotiated settlement cannot be reached.

At March 31, 2018, there were four lawsuits involving claims made against WMC arising from alleged breaches of representations and warranties on mortgage loans included in five securitizations, one of which was dismissed in April 2018. The adverse parties in these cases are securitization trustees or parties claiming to act on their behalf. As discussed in Legal Proceedings, two of the three remaining lawsuits have been stayed pending court approval of settlement agreements. The sole remaining active lawsuit against WMC is the TMI case, and a bench trial in that case began on January 16, 2018.

Although the alleged claims for relief vary from case to case, the complaints and counterclaims in these actions generally assert claims for breach of contract, indemnification, and/or declaratory judgment, and seek specific performance (repurchase of defective mortgage loans) and/or money damages. Adverse court decisions, including in cases not involving WMC, could result in new claims and lawsuits on additional loans. However, WMC continues to believe that it has defenses to the claims asserted in litigation, including, for example, based on causation and materiality requirements and applicable statutes of limitations. It is not possible to predict the outcome or impact of these defenses and other factors, any of which could materially affect the amount of any loss ultimately incurred by WMC on these claims.

WMC has also received indemnification demands, nearly all of which are unspecified, from depositors/underwriters/sponsors of RMBS in connection with lawsuits brought by RMBS investors concerning alleged misrepresentations in the securitization offering documents to which WMC is not a party, or, in two cases, involving mortgage loan repurchase claims made against RMBS sponsors. WMC believes that it has defenses to these demands.

To the extent WMC is required to repurchase loans, WMC’s loss also would be affected by several factors, including pay downs, accrued interest and fees, and the value of the underlying collateral. The reserve and estimate of possible loss reflect judgment, based on currently available information, and a number of assumptions, including economic conditions, claim and settlement activity, pending and threatened litigation, court decisions regarding WMC’s legal defenses, indemnification demands, government activity, and other variables in the mortgage industry. Actual losses arising from claims against WMC could exceed these amounts and additional claims and lawsuits could result if actual claim rates, governmental actions, litigation and indemnification activity, adverse court decisions, actual settlement rates or losses WMC incurs on repurchased loans differ from its assumptions. Adverse developments under any of these scenarios, or a finding of liability in the TMI case discussed above, could be in an amount exceeding the total value of WMC's assets.

Alstom legacy matters. On November 2, 2015, we acquired the Thermal, Renewables and Grid businesses from Alstom. Prior to the acquisition, the seller was the subject of two significant cases involving anti-competitive activities and improper payments: (1) in January 2007, Alstom was fined €65 million by the European Commission for participating in a gas insulated switchgear cartel that operated from 1988 to 2004 (that fine was later reduced to €59 million), and (2) in December 2014, Alstom pled guilty in the United States to multiple violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and paid a criminal penalty of $772 million. As part of GE’s accounting for the acquisition, we established a reserve amounting to $858 million for legal and compliance matters related to the legacy business practices that were the subject of these and related cases in various jurisdictions.

Regardless of jurisdiction, the allegations relate to claimed anti-competitive conduct or improper payments in the pre-acquisition period as the source of legal violations and/or damages. Given the significant litigation and compliance activity related to these matters and our ongoing efforts to resolve them, it is difficult to assess whether the disbursements will ultimately be consistent with the reserve established. The estimation of this reserve involved significant judgment and may not reflect the full range of uncertainties and unpredictable outcomes inherent in litigation and investigations of this nature. Damages sought may include disgorgement of profits on the underlying business transactions, fines and/or penalties, interest, or other forms of resolution. Factors that can affect the ultimate amount of losses associated with these matters include the way cooperation is assessed and valued, prosecutorial discretion in the determination of damages, formulas for determining fines and penalties, the duration and amount of legal and investigative resources applied, and political and social influences within each jurisdiction, among other considerations. Actual losses arising from claims in these matters could exceed the amount provided. At this time, we are unable to develop a meaningful estimate of the range of reasonably possible additional losses for this exposure.

ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS

Our operations, like operations of other companies engaged in similar businesses, involve the use, disposal and cleanup of substances regulated under environmental protection laws. We are involved in numerous remediation actions to clean up hazardous wastes as required by federal and state laws. Liabilities for remediation costs exclude possible insurance recoveries and, when dates and amounts of such costs are not known, are not discounted. When there appears to be a range of possible costs with equal likelihood, liabilities are based on the low end of such range. It is reasonably possible that our environmental remediation exposure will exceed amounts accrued. However, due to uncertainties about the status of laws, regulations, technology and information related to individual sites, such amounts are not reasonably estimable. For further information, see our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017.