Nationwide Fracking Dust-up
should Be “Non story,” says Hartwig
The recent news report about Nationwide not cover- ing claims from fracking has created confusion and
“should never have been a story in the first
place,” says Robert Hartwig, president of
the Insurance Information Institute.
Hartwig says that the widely circulated story—that Nationwide Insurance
is the first carrier to say it would not
cover claims from fracking—led to some
confusion among reporters covering the
energy industry, forcing the carrier to
clarify what has been a longstanding policy
among insurers.
In early July, a memo, attributed to
Nationwide, was posted on several New
York environmental websites opposed
to expansion of fracking mining into
the state.
Fracking is the injection of high-pres-
sure water into underground shale for the
purpose of releasing oil and gas trapped
in the rock.
