Insurance industry continues to wrestle with catastrophes
Aon Benfield’s Impact Forecasting, the catastrophe modeling division of the company, has released its latest Global Catastrophe Recap report. These reports are issued monthly and highlight the natural disasters that have occurred around the world and details what impact they may have had on the insurance industry. The latest report provides some insight on the natural disasters that struck throughout the U.S. in April. The report makes note of several severe events that have caused significant damage in some parts of the country.
Report shows severe hail and flooding caused most damage in April this year
According to the report, severe hail and flooding were the largest contributors to damages in April in the U.S. The insurance industry often wrestles with the damages caused by hailstorms and flooding, but the report suggests that such weather events are becoming somewhat stronger than they have been over the past few years. The report does note, however, that April saw a significant decrease in the number of tornadoes formed. Data from the U.S. Storm Prediction Center shows that only 83 tornadoes formed in April, a 60% decrease over the
number that had been reported in April 2012.
Hail and floods cause minimum of $700 million in losses
The report indicates that the severe damage caused by hailstorms and floods throughout the U.S. have caused a minimum of $700 million in economic losses. The insurance industry is likely to feel such losses in certain states more than others. The insurance industry may not feel a great deal of pressure from flood damage, however, as flood insurance is largely within the jurisdiction of the federal government. While the industry may not be fully liable for flood damages, floods can cause significant disruptions in business, which the insurance industry must account for depending on the coverage carried by businesses and other organizations.
Report highlights global events as well
The report is not restricted to natural disasters in the U.S., of course, and does provide some insight on global events. Flooding in Africa and New Zealand, for example, has caused $36 million and $14.2 million in economic losses, respectively. A recent earthquake in China and several in Japan have also produced some losses for the global insurance industry.
