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Commitments and Contingencies
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6 Months Ended |
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Mar. 31, 2015
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| Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] | |
| Commitments and Contingencies |
Commitments and Contingencies
General — Like most companies, from time to time we are involved in claims, lawsuits, and government proceedings relating to our operations, including environmental, patent infringement, business practices, commercial transactions, product and general liability, workers’ compensation, auto liability, employment, and other matters. The ultimate outcome of these matters cannot be predicted with certainty. An estimated loss from these contingencies is recognized when we believe it is probable that a loss has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated; however, it is difficult to measure the actual loss that might be incurred related to litigation. If a loss is not considered probable and/or cannot be reasonably estimated, we are required to make a disclosure if there is at least a reasonable possibility that a significant loss may be incurred. Legal fees associated with claims and lawsuits are generally expensed as incurred.
Claims other than employment and related matters have deductibles and self-insured retentions ranging from $0.5 to $1.0 per occurrence or per claim, depending upon the type of coverage and policy period. Outside insurance companies and third-party claims administrators assist in establishing individual claim reserves, and an independent outside actuary provides estimates of ultimate projected losses, including incurred but not reported claims, which are used to establish reserves for losses. Claim reserves for employment-related matters are established based upon advice from internal and external counsel and historical settlement information for claims and related fees when such amounts are considered probable of payment.
The recorded amounts represent our best estimate of the costs we will incur in relation to such exposures, but it is possible that actual costs will differ from those estimates.
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