I'm like 99% sure this has always been the "ideal" business model. Only take a chance if you can afford it. Something, something cost-benefit analysis.

There was a stink about a car manufacturer and seat belts (I think) a few years back. They decided the cost of a few settlements for dead people was less than the cost of fixing the problem.

This is now, has been, and (unless we eat the rich) always will be the way it is.