LandAmerica to Restate Earnings

LandAmerica Financial Group Inc., a real estate company based in Richmond, Va., has announced that it will restate its audited financial results for fiscal years 2000-2004 and unaudited quarterly results for the first three quarters of 2005 to correct an accounting error that resulted in a net understatement of reported earnings.The error involved the calculation of the company's policy and contract claims accrual, or claims reserve, and has no impact on the company's cash flows, LandAmerica said. The error stemmed from a misinterpretation of data in a report generated by a new claims system introduced in 1999. The misinterpretation caused claims paid to be reported to the company's actuaries "without the appropriate reduction for recoveries," LandAmerica said. The restatements will result in higher net income for all periods except 2002, with upward revisions ranging from 0.8% in the third quarter of 2005 to 25.3% in 2004, according to LandAmerica.