Insurance news from Toronto shows Co-operators lost over $37 million to flood

insurance news - losses

The insurer has revealed its latest data, including a massive loss last quarter from the flooding in July.

The massive flooding that swept through Toronto, Canada, this July is making insurance news headlines once more as Co-operators General Insurance Company has now reported that it experienced a loss of $37.9 million as a result of that one sudden event.

The flooding came on out of the blue as a result of an unexpected and exceptionally heavy rain storm.

The insurance news was considerable at the time, but now it has returned as the insurer, based in Guelph, Ontario, has released the data from that quarter. It also showed that this was quite the different situation from the year before, when the same three month period ending on September 20, 2012 provided the company with a $12.6 million profit.

insurance news - lossesThe loss making this insurance news also took a chunk out of the common shares of the company.

When compared to last year’s same quarter, when the insurance news was much more positive, at a profit of $0.46 per common share, this year was much different, showing a loss of $2.02 per common share. The company explained that even after it had collected reinsurance, it still lost about $47.9 million (before taxes) as a result of the flooding that came about in a single day in the city of Toronto.

The direct written premiums from that insurer, which are the indication of the amount of the premiums collected before the reinsurance premiums are deducted, increased by 5.9 percent ($32.9 million) to reach $594.3 million.

According to Kathy Bardswick, the president and CEO of the company, in an insurance news statement “The heavy rains and flooding in the Greater Toronto Area, which were the most costly natural disaster in Ontario’s history, had a very significant impact on our financial results this quarter.”

She went on to explain the insurance news further, by stating that even though the insurer has faced considerable challenges related to the weather, “the organization’s financial strength is solid.” She added that “Our capital position remains strong, and we were pleased with the growth we achieved in the auto, home and commercial lines of business across the country.”

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