DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW MUCH ARE THEY GOING TO GET?????

Marsh & McLenna To Pay

Insurance broker Marsh & McLennan Cos. will pay $2.4 million in restitution to settle allegations in a 2005 lawsuit of bid-rigging, price-fixing and illegal steering of customers in return for kickbacks, Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said last week.

The civil suit was part of a broad investigation of the insurance industry that resulted in a dozen settlements involving Connecticut and $539.7 million of restitution to customers and taxpayers nationwide, Blumenthal said. In addition, Connecticut collected $35.09 million in civil penalties.

Marsh contested the allegations and did not admit wrongdoing in the settlement.

The attorney general had originally sued Marsh and commercial insurer ACE Ltd. in January 2005 in a case concerning a state Department of Administrative Services contract, which Marsh placed with ACE. Marsh was only supposed to get $100,000 in commissions on the $80 million contract, but it solicited a secret $50,000 bonus commission from ACE, the suit said. ACE allegedly paid it to ensure that it would get similar business from the broker in the future.

ACE settled that suit by paying $40,000 in restitution to the state in September 2005, and Blumenthal filed a broader amended suit against only Marsh. The suit, which went beyond just the state contract, implicated several insurers, cited Connecticut victims and added allegations of bid-rigging and price-fixing.

Among several Connecticut businesses harmed by Marsh’s actions were Hubbell Inc., Kaman Corp., Hexcel Corp. and Bridgeport Hospital, Blumenthal said. (AP)