Mold: The $1 Billion Industry
Cleaning &
Maintenance Online, September 23, 2002
WASHINGTON –– A new report is
underscoring just how lucrative mold has become for mold remediators,
water damage restoration experts, indoor air quality testers and
others associated with the industry.
Mold claims cost homeowners insurers
$1 billion in 2001 and are
blamed by insurers as being a major factor for the first recorded
fiscal year loss in the property/casualty insurance industry history,
the Insurance Journal reported.
While playing more of factor in the $7.9 billion deficit was the
decline in the stock market, the $1 billion in mold claim payouts
still underscore a huge problem for insurers and a huge potential for
remediators and indoor air quality specialists.
The Insurance Journal quoted the National Association of
Independent Insurers (NAII) as reporting that mold claim payouts for
2001 increased five times over their 2000 levels.
JanSan industry experts told CM e-News Daily/CMM Online that
the draw of the mold industry is expected to only grow as public
hysteria about mold and a lack of clear science to either dispel
concerns, or validate them, continues. |
