Photographs of the San Francisco Earthquake and Fire from the Charles Derleth Papers. Credit:The Bancroft Library. University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720-6000

Lloyd's role

The San Francisco disaster cost Lloyd’s more than $50 million – a staggering sum in those days, the equivalent to more than $1 billion in today’s dollars. But the quake also cemented Lloyd's reputation for paying valid claims. As one of the leading earthquake underwriters, Lloyd's underwriter, Cuthbert Heath issued his famous edict and built the foundations of the modern Lloyd's.
Heath pays all claimsLessons for the industryCuthbert Heath