Boy Scouts' insurer agrees to contribute $800 million to sexual abuse victims' fund

An insurer representing the Boy Scouts of America says it will contribute $800 million to settle more than 82,000 sexual abuse claims.

Chubb Ltd.'s Century Indemnity Company released a statement Monday saying that under the proposed agreement, "Century Indemnity Company and other Chubb companies will pay $800 million and obtain a broad release for all Chubb companies from BSA-related abuse claims."

In a separate statement emailed to NPR, the BSA said it was "extremely pleased" to announce the settlement.

The tens of thousands of claimants who say they were abused as Scout members decades ago have until Dec. 28 to vote on the Boy Scouts bankruptcy reorganization plan under an order issued in August by a judge in Delaware.

The judge's decision was initially opposed by insurers, attorneys for some of the victims and church denominations that have sponsored local Boy Scout troops.

The contribution by the insurer would bring the amount of money in a proposed trust to more than $2.6 billion, making it the largest sexual abuse settlement in U.S. history, according to The Associated Press.

Under the settlement, the Boy Scouts and its 250 local councils would be released from further liability for sexual abuse claims, the AP says.

"This is an extremely important step forward in the BSA's efforts to equitably compensate survivors, and our hope is that this will lead to further settlement agreements from other parties," the BSA said in its emailed statement.

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