Last year has garnered major notoriety for the number and severity of natural disasters it played host to. 2011 has become widely recognized in the insurance industry as the costliest year in recent history in regards to natural disasters. While estimates varying regarding the total cost of disasters, Munich Re, a reinsurance and risk modeling organization, claims that 2011 generated more than $380 billion in worldwide insured losses, only a third of which was paid by insurance companies. The disasters have caused the global insurance industry to raise prices, but…
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Health insurers eye climate change as a major concern for the future
Climate change is often a controversial issue, especially when the federal government is concerned. The insurance industry, however, is beginning to take the matter more seriously, as a new report shows that purely environmental factors may be causing the high costs seen in the health care system. The report comes from the Natural Resources Defense Council, an international environmental advocacy group based in New York. The report suggests that natural disasters that have struck the U.S. in the past decade may be having a significant impact on the health of…
Read MoreFEMA issues warning for New York and other states affected by Tropical Storm Lee to beware of insurance fraud
More than a month has passed since Tropical Storm Lee made landfall on the East Coast and FEMA is still fielding complaints regarding insurance. The September storm brought flooding in states along the Gulf Coast and continued North until it reached New York. To date, the damage caused by the storm is estimated to be more than $250 million. The storm caused damage to homes, much of which comes from flooding, putting the event on dodgy insurance territory. Most homeowners do not have flood insurance, especially those living in areas…
Read MoreAllianz reports catastrophe losses on the rise but not the root of industry woes
Risk assessment experts at Allianz, one of the largest insurers in the world, have spoken out about the rising costs insurers are experiencing from natural catastrophe, outlining their findings in risk briefing – Allianz Risk Pulse: Focus Natural Catastrophes. With occurrences of severe weather, earthquakes and flooding, many insurance companies are seeing losses due to natural disasters and, according to Allianz, the number of companies experiencing these losses is on the rise. However, the increase may not be due to natural disasters at all. Allianz finds that the growing trend…
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