Insurers spend billions on large weather events from 2011

Insurance companies are continuing to make payments to policyholders who suffered damage from large severe weather events earlier this year. Officials in Missouri have now named the tornado that ripped through Joplin’s center earlier in 2011 as the most expensive insurance event in the history of the state. It has been estimated that insurers have already spent approximately $1.13 billion on claims related to this occurrence, and that when all claims have been made and paid out, that number will have grown to almost $1.9 billion. According to John Huff…

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Liberty Mutual posts Q3 losses due to natural catastrophe and asbestos charges

The Liberty Mutual Group, one of the largest property casualty insurers in the U.S., has posted their third quarter financial report. The report shows that the company has lost millions as the result of natural disasters and a high-profile asbestos lawsuit that was levied against the insurer earlier in the year. Last year, the insurer reported a net profit of $567 million during the third quarter, but 2011 has produced several major natural disasters that have shaken the insurance industry to its core. Liberty Mutual’s losses from catastrophic events for…

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Chubb Corp. reports losses verging on $500 million from natural disasters in the third quarter

The Chubb Corporation, a massive property insurance organization, has had a difficult time recovering from recent storms in the U.S. The occurrence of natural disasters in the U.S. has been unusually high this year, and the damage caused by these storms has been unprecedented. The storms have imposed gargantuan financial losses on the insurance industry and many companies are still sifting through claims from earlier in the year that are adding to total losses. Chubb officials have warned investors that the company’s third quarter losses may end up being higher…

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Flooding costs from Hurricane Irene to be covered in part by taxpayer dollars

As Hurricane Irene bowled through the east coast, it left behind a path of destruction caused by its high winds and rains, with initial estimates for the damage ranging from $2 to $7 billion. That said, much of the bill for rebuilding will be covered by taxpayer dollars. The reason for this additional cost to taxpayers is that the majority of home and business owners in the Northeast don’t have coverage for flooding caused by hurricanes, and the federal insurance program is already facing a debt worth billions of dollars.…

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Hurricane Irene expected to birth higher insurance premiums in the East Coast

Hurricane Irene has come and gone but the storms effects may linger for several years. To date, the storm accounts for an estimated $7 billion in damages throughout the East Coast, making it one of the most costly natural disasters to strike the nation. The costs of damage are expected to influence property insurers who have long been leery of offering coverage to homes and businesses in risk prone areas. Consumers may be seeing higher premiums this year as a result of the hurricane. Higher premiums have been the theme…

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