Horror at Lloyd's; anger on Main Street.(Books)(Business)

0 Comments | Washington Times, The, September, 1996 | by Veigle, Anne

It's a rare investor who likes to own up to losing money, even in the vain hope of recovering funds thrown at a failed venture. But in Risky Business: An Insider's Account of the Disaster at Lloyd's of London (Scribner, $25, 343 pages), Elizabeth Luessenhop graciously tells us how she and 33,000 other investors are on the hook for nearly $13 billion in losses owed to Lloyd's of London.

She and financial writer Martin Mayer weave a skillful and intriguing tale of the arcane world of insurance as it has been practiced at the once-unshakable British insurance giant Lloyd's, one of the world's oldest business institutions. When she joined Lloyd's as a "name" in 1983, Mrs. Luessenhop was asked a pivotal question: "Do you understand the meaning of `unlimited...