Since an onslaught of major storms in April and May, the Ohio Insurance Institute has been busy collecting data and has recently released a new report in that accounts for a storm that ran through the state earlier this month. The Institute, comprised of property and casualty insurers, usually only issues reports regarding insured losses if they exceed $25 million. This new report is the sixth the Institute has release this year, showing that the devastating effects of storms that occurred months ago linger.
According to the Institute’s survey, more than 125,000 claims have been filed in the wake of the storms. These claims account for more than $530 million in losses – an amount that is expected to rise as insurers continue to receive more and more claims. The Ohio Insurance Institute is calling this year “very unusual” in terms of losses.
Some analysts have speculated that the devastation of the storms would spur the state’s insurers to raise rates. Many property insurers have sought approval for higher rates from state regulators but insist that their primary concern is the recovery effort. Blake Zitko, a spokesman for State Farm Insurance, when speaking Ohio’s Daily Journal, said that the company is determined to help people recover.
The toll that this year’s storms have taken on the insurance industry is likely to bring major changes to the industry as a whole. Higher rates are expected, but many insurers are also looking into how they can better manage these events in the future.
