Commitments and Contingencies

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2016

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

Commitments and Contingencies

Note 18.  Commitments and Contingencies

CNA Financial

In the course of selling business entities and assets to third parties, CNA agreed to guarantee the performance of certain obligations of a previously owned subsidiary and to indemnify purchasers for losses arising out of breaches of representation and warranties with respect to the business entities or assets sold, including, in certain cases, losses arising from undisclosed liabilities or certain named litigation. Such guarantee and indemnification agreements in effect for sales of business entities, assets and third party loans may include provisions that survive indefinitely. As of December 31, 2016, the aggregate amount related to quantifiable guarantees was $375 million and the aggregate amount related to quantifiable indemnification agreements was $258 million. Should CNA be required to make payments under the guarantee, it would have the right to seek reimbursement in certain cases from an affiliate of a previously owned subsidiary.

In addition, CNA has agreed to provide indemnification to third-party purchasers for certain losses associated with sold business entities or assets that are not limited by a contractual monetary amount. As of December 31, 2016, CNA had outstanding unlimited indemnifications in connection with the sales of certain of its business entities or assets that included tax liabilities arising prior to a purchaser’s ownership of an entity or asset, defects in title at the time of sale, employee claims arising prior to closing and in some cases losses arising from certain litigation and undisclosed liabilities. Certain provisions of the indemnification agreements survive indefinitely, while others survive until the applicable statutes of limitation expire, or until the agreed upon contract terms expire.

CNA also provided guarantees, if the primary obligor fails to perform, to holders of structured settlement annuities provided by a previously owned subsidiary. As of December 31, 2016, the potential amount of future payments CNA could be required to pay under these guarantees was approximately $1.9 billion, which will be paid over the lifetime of the annuitants. CNA does not believe any payment is likely under these guarantees, as CNA is the beneficiary of a trust that must be maintained at a level that approximates the discounted reserves for these annuities.

CNA recently identified rating errors related to its multi-peril package product within its Small Business unit. CNA recorded a charge which reduced earned premium by $16 million in anticipation of voluntarily issuing $30 million of premium refunds related to affected policies written from December 1, 2015 through December 31, 2016. Earned premium in 2017 will be negatively impacted by the portion of the $30 million that has not yet been earned through December 31, 2016 and the expected refund amount will increase further because of premium written in 2017, prior to CNA’s actions to correct its rating process. CNA is currently in dialogue with state regulators and providing them with details regarding the anticipated premium refunds and other corrective actions. CNA is reviewing other business lines to determine whether other similar issues exist. Fines or penalties related to the foregoing or further refunds which may be required are reasonably possible, but the amount of such losses, if any, cannot be estimated at this time.