Representatives of nine creditors of failed Mentor Insurance yesterday sanctioned the distribution of $150 million to the company's unsecured creditors.

It brings the total pay-out to date to $230.6 million, representing 55 cents on the dollar. And the liquidators, partners of Ernst & Young, in declaring another, final, pay-out will be realised, said there was finally an end in sight to the nine-year-old liquidation.

Joint liquidator Mr. Charles W. Kempe said, "We took nine years, but we are between 90 and 95 percent finished this job. I believe that we have not only broken the back of the liquidation, but we have substantially completed the job.'' The liquidators, Mr. Kempe and Mr. Nigel Hamilton, believe that another five cents on the dollar will be paid out, bringing the total up to 60 cents on the dollar, way above the 1985 estimate of 25 cents.

Mr. Kempe stated the substantial distribution was made possible by the implementation of a court approved "scheme of arrangement'' joint liquidators developed last year.

He said,"The Mentor scheme represented the first cut-off type scheme of arrangement for reinsurance companies conducted within a liquidation.

"In essence, the scheme provided for a final filing deadline by which creditors were required to finalise and file any and all claims, including as yet unreported claims, with the joint liquidators.

"In the vast majority of cases, this required the use of actuarial techniques, given the long development period (up to 40 years) for losses of nature insured by the company.

"The challenge to creditors was to support their claims. Once the filing deadline passed, the scheme made a prompt distribution likely. The efforts of our team made it a reality.'' Nearly 1,000 creditors filed claims in the Mentor liquidation totalling $970 million. Rejections and reductions arising from adjudication procedures and the application of pre-liquidation security, the discounting of loss reserves and the set off amounts due to Mentor (in accordance with directions of the Supreme Court of Bermuda) reduced the amounts eligible to participate in distributions to approximately $419 million.

The joint liquidators have retained a reserve of $41.7 million to cover possible distributions in respect of appeals against their adjudications, as well as to pursue remaining reinsurance recoverables due to the estate, which may exceed $25 million. Further collections are an on-going priority.

"Over the past nine years,'' he said,"we have established a very good relationship with Mentor's major reinsurers and have negotiated substantial commutations in that period.

"There remain a number of reinsurers, however, which appear to believe that the size of their debt, their geographic location or their general recalcitrance will allow them to avoid their obligations.

"We received a very strong message from our committee today to pursue such reinsurers in the most aggressive manner.'' Further reinsurance collections and remaining reserves will go to creditors within two years.