Legal Proceedings	3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2016
Legal Proceedings [Abstract]
Legal Proceedings	NOTE 14 Legal Proceedings We establish accruals for legal proceedings, including litigation and regulatory and governmental investigations and inquiries, when information related to the loss contingencies represented by those matters indicates both that a loss is probable and that the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated. Any such accruals are adjusted thereafter as appropriate to reflect changed circumstances. When we are able to do so, we also determine estimates of possible losses or ranges of possible losses, whether in excess of any related accrued liability or where there is no accrued liability, for disclosed legal proceedings (“Disclosed Matters,” which are those matters disclosed in this Note 14 as well as those matters disclosed in Note 20 Legal Proceedings in Part II, Item 8 of our 2015 Form 10-K (such prior disclosure referred to as “Prior Disclosure”)). For Disclosed Matters where we are able to estimate such possible losses or ranges of possible losses, as of March 31, 2016, we estimate that it is reasonably possible that we could incur losses in excess of related accrued liabilities, if any, in an aggregate amount of up to approximately $550 million. The estimates included in this amount are based on our analysis of currently available information and are subject to significant judgment and a variety of assumptions and uncertainties. As new information is obtained we may change our estimates. Due to the inherent subjectivity of the assessments and unpredictability of outcomes of legal proceedings, any amounts accrued or included in this aggregate amount may not represent the ultimate loss to us from the legal proceedings in question. Thus, our exposure and ultimate losses may be higher, and possibly significantly so, than the amounts accrued or this aggregate amount. In our experience, legal proceedings are inherently unpredictable. One or more of the following factors frequently contribute to this inherent unpredictability: the proceeding is in its early stages; the damages sought are unspecified, unsupported or uncertain; it is unclear whether a case brought as a class action will be allowed to proceed on that basis or, if permitted to proceed as a class action, how the class will be defined; the other party is seeking relief other than or in addition to compensatory damages (including, in the case of regulatory and governmental investigations and inquiries, the possibility of fines and penalties); the matter presents meaningful legal uncertainties, including novel issues of law; we have not engaged in meaningful settlement discussions; discovery has not started or is not complete; there are significant facts in dispute; the possible outcomes may not be amenable to the use of statistical or quantitative analytical tools; predicting possible outcomes depends on making assumptions about future decisions of courts or regulatory bodies or the behavior of other parties; and there are a large number of parties named as defendants (including where it is uncertain how damages or liability, if any, will be shared among multiple defendants). Generally, the less progress that has been made in the proceedings or the broader the range of potential results, the harder it is for us to estimate losses or ranges of losses that it is reasonably possible we could incur. As a result of these types of factors, we are unable, at this time, to estimate the losses that are reasonably possible to be incurred or ranges of such losses with respect to some of the matters disclosed, and the aggregate estimated amount provided above does not include an estimate for every Disclosed Matter. Therefore, as the estimated aggregate amount disclosed above does not include all of the Disclosed Matters, the amount disclosed above does not represent our maximum reasonably possible loss exposure for all of the Disclosed Matters. The estimated aggregate amount also does not reflect any of our exposure to matters not so disclosed, as discussed below under “Other.” We include in some of the descriptions of individual Disclosed Matters certain quantitative information related to the plaintiff’s claim against us as alleged in the plaintiff’s pleadings or other public filings or otherwise publicly available information. While information of this type may provide insight into the potential magnitude of a matter, it does not necessarily represent our estimate of reasonably possible loss or our judgment as to any currently appropriate accrual. Some of our exposure in Disclosed Matters may be offset by applicable insurance coverage. We do not consider the possible availability of insurance coverage in determining the amounts of any accruals (although we record the amount of related insurance recoveries that are deemed probable up to the amount of the accrual) or in determining any estimates of possible losses or ranges of possible losses. CBNV Mortgage Litigation Our petition for a writ of certiorari filed with the U.S. Supreme Court seeking review of the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in the matter currently pending in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania under the caption In re: Community Bank of Northern Virginia Lending Practices Litigation (No. 03-0425 (W.D. Pa.), MDL No. 1674) was denied in February 2016. We filed motions for decertification and summary judgment with the district court in April 2016. Lender Placed Insurance Litigation The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida granted final approval of the settlement in Montoya, et al. v. PNC Bank, N.A., et al. (Case No. 1:14-cv-20474-JEM) in April 2016. Pre-need Funeral Arrangements In the lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri under the caption Jo Ann Howard, P.C., et al. v. Cassity, et al. (No. 4:09-CV-1252-ERW), the plaintiffs have cross-appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit from the trial court's orders reducing the judgment by amounts paid in settlement by other defendants, denying plaintiffs’ motion for pre-judgment interest, and dismissing the plaintiffs’ aiding and abetting claims. Other Regulatory and Governmental Inquiries PNC is the subject of investigations, audits and other forms of regulatory and governmental inquiry covering a broad range of issues in our banking, securities and other financial services businesses, in some cases as part of reviews of specified activities at multiple industry participants. Over the last few years, we have experienced an increase in regulatory and governmental investigations, audits and other inquiries. Areas of current regulatory or governmental inquiry with respect to PNC include consumer protection, fair lending, mortgage origination and servicing, mortgage and non mortgage-related insurance and reinsurance, municipal finance activities, conduct by broker-dealers, automobile lending practices, employment practices, and participation in government insurance or guarantee programs, some of which are described in Prior Disclosure. These inquiries, including those described in Prior Disclosure, may lead to administrative, civil or criminal proceedings, and possibly result in remedies including fines, penalties, restitution, or alterations in our business practices, and in additional expenses and collateral costs. Our practice is to cooperate fully with regulatory and governmental investigations, audits and other inquiries, including those described in Prior Disclosure. Other In addition to the proceedings or other matters described above and in Prior Disclosure, PNC and persons to whom we may have indemnification obligations, in the normal course of business, are subject to various other pending and threatened legal proceedings in which claims for monetary damages and other relief are asserted. We do not anticipate, at the present time, that the ultimate aggregate liability, if any, arising out of such other legal proceedings will have a material adverse effect on our financial position. However, we cannot now determine whether or not any claims asserted against us or others to whom we may have indemnification obligations, whether in the proceedings or other matters described above or otherwise, will have a material adverse effect on our results of operations in any future reporting period, which will depend on, among other things, the amount of the loss resulting from the claim and the amount of income otherwise reported for the reporting period.

NOTE 14 Legal Proceedings

We establish accruals for legal proceedings, including litigation and regulatory and governmental investigations and inquiries, when information related to the loss contingencies represented by those matters indicates both that a loss is probable and that the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated. Any such accruals are adjusted thereafter as appropriate to reflect changed circumstances. When we are able to do so, we also determine estimates of possible losses or ranges of possible losses, whether in excess of any related accrued liability or where there is no accrued liability, for disclosed legal proceedings (“Disclosed Matters,” which are those matters disclosed in this Note 14 as well as those matters disclosed in Note 20 Legal Proceedings in Part II, Item 8 of our 2015 Form 10-K (such prior disclosure referred to as “Prior Disclosure”)). For Disclosed Matters where we are able to estimate such possible losses or ranges of possible losses, as of March 31, 2016, we estimate that it is reasonably possible that we could incur losses in excess of related accrued liabilities, if any, in an aggregate amount of up to approximately $550 million. The estimates included in this amount are based on our analysis of currently available information and are subject to significant judgment and a variety of assumptions and uncertainties. As new information is obtained we may change our estimates. Due to the inherent subjectivity of the assessments and unpredictability of outcomes of legal proceedings, any amounts accrued or included in this aggregate amount may not represent the ultimate loss to us from the legal proceedings in question. Thus, our exposure and ultimate losses may be higher, and possibly significantly so, than the amounts accrued or this aggregate amount.

In our experience, legal proceedings are inherently unpredictable. One or more of the following factors frequently contribute to this inherent unpredictability: the proceeding is in its early stages; the damages sought are unspecified, unsupported or uncertain; it is unclear whether a case brought as a class action will be allowed to proceed on that basis or, if permitted to proceed as a class action, how the class will be defined; the other party is seeking relief other than or in addition to compensatory damages (including, in the case of regulatory and governmental investigations and inquiries, the possibility of fines and penalties); the matter presents meaningful legal uncertainties, including novel issues of law; we have not engaged in meaningful settlement discussions; discovery has not started or is not complete; there are significant facts in dispute; the possible outcomes may not be amenable to the use of statistical or quantitative analytical tools; predicting possible outcomes depends on making assumptions about future decisions of courts or regulatory bodies or the behavior of other parties; and there are a large number of parties named as defendants (including where it is uncertain how damages or liability, if any, will be shared among multiple defendants). Generally, the less progress that has been made in the proceedings or the broader the range of potential results, the harder it is for us to estimate losses or ranges of losses that it is reasonably possible we could incur.

As a result of these types of factors, we are unable, at this time, to estimate the losses that are reasonably possible to be incurred or ranges of such losses with respect to some of the matters disclosed, and the aggregate estimated amount provided above does not include an estimate for every Disclosed Matter. Therefore, as the estimated aggregate amount disclosed above does not include all of the Disclosed Matters, the amount disclosed above does not represent our maximum reasonably possible loss exposure for all of the Disclosed Matters. The estimated aggregate amount also does not reflect any of our exposure to matters not so disclosed, as discussed below under “Other.”

We include in some of the descriptions of individual Disclosed Matters certain quantitative information related to the plaintiff’s claim against us as alleged in the plaintiff’s pleadings or other public filings or otherwise publicly available information. While information of this type may provide insight into the potential magnitude of a matter, it does not necessarily represent our estimate of reasonably possible loss or our judgment as to any currently appropriate accrual.

Some of our exposure in Disclosed Matters may be offset by applicable insurance coverage. We do not consider the possible availability of insurance coverage in determining the amounts of any accruals (although we record the amount of related insurance recoveries that are deemed probable up to the amount of the accrual) or in determining any estimates of possible losses or ranges of possible losses.

CBNV Mortgage Litigation

Our petition for a writ of certiorari filed with the U.S. Supreme Court seeking review of the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in the matter currently pending in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania under the caption In re: Community Bank of Northern Virginia Lending Practices Litigation (No. 03-0425 (W.D. Pa.), MDL No. 1674) was denied in February 2016. We filed motions for decertification and summary judgment with the district court in April 2016.

Lender Placed Insurance Litigation

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida granted final approval of the settlement in Montoya, et al. v. PNC Bank, N.A., et al. (Case No. 1:14-cv-20474-JEM) in April 2016.

Pre-need Funeral Arrangements

In the lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri under the caption Jo Ann Howard, P.C., et al. v. Cassity, et al. (No. 4:09-CV-1252-ERW), the plaintiffs have cross-appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit from the trial court's orders reducing the judgment by amounts paid in settlement by other defendants, denying plaintiffs’ motion for pre-judgment interest, and dismissing the plaintiffs’ aiding and abetting claims.

Other Regulatory and Governmental Inquiries

PNC is the subject of investigations, audits and other forms of regulatory and governmental inquiry covering a broad range of issues in our banking, securities and other financial services businesses, in some cases as part of reviews of specified activities at multiple industry participants. Over the last few years, we have experienced an increase in regulatory and governmental investigations, audits and other inquiries. Areas of current regulatory or governmental inquiry with respect to PNC include consumer protection, fair lending, mortgage origination and servicing, mortgage and non mortgage-related insurance and reinsurance, municipal finance activities, conduct by broker-dealers, automobile lending practices, employment practices, and participation in government insurance or guarantee programs, some of which are described in Prior Disclosure. These inquiries, including those described in Prior Disclosure, may lead to administrative, civil or criminal proceedings, and possibly result in remedies including fines, penalties, restitution, or alterations in our business practices, and in additional expenses and collateral costs.

Our practice is to cooperate fully with regulatory and governmental investigations, audits and other inquiries, including those described in Prior Disclosure.

Other

In addition to the proceedings or other matters described above and in Prior Disclosure, PNC and persons to whom we may have indemnification obligations, in the normal course of business, are subject to various other pending and threatened legal proceedings in which claims for monetary damages and other relief are asserted. We do not anticipate, at the present time, that the ultimate aggregate liability, if any, arising out of such other legal proceedings will have a material adverse effect on our financial position. However, we cannot now determine whether or not any claims asserted against us or others to whom we may have indemnification obligations, whether in the proceedings or other matters described above or otherwise, will have a material adverse effect on our results of operations in any future reporting period, which will depend on, among other things, the amount of the loss resulting from the claim and the amount of income otherwise reported for the reporting period.