Report: NYC Paid Over $686M In Settlements Last Fiscal Year

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) - A new report finds New York City paid out more than $686 million during the last fiscal year in settlements and court awards. The disputes ranged from slip-and-falls to contract disputes to lawsuits against police.

City Comptroller John Liu's report Thursday says the total is down very slightly from the previous fiscal year. But he notes that costs are rising in the areas that account for more than three-quarters of the payments: personal injury and property damage.

The city paid out more than $550 million in those areas in fiscal 2011, up more than 5 percent in a year. That includes three consistently expensive areas: claims against police, city hospitals and the city Transportation Department.

"The claims against the NYPD have risen the most," Liu told 1010 WINS. "We've seen a 35 percent increase in the settlement costs for the NYPD as compared to the year before and that's a very alarming trend that we believe needs to be stemmed and reversed."

The totals include both lawsuits and matters handled through a city claims process.

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