Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Commissioner Says 2021 Colorado Wildfire Losses Surpass $2B
Oct 31 2022 // A wildfire that destroyed nearly 1,100 homes and businesses in suburban Denver last winter caused more than $2 billion in losses, making it by far the costliest in Colorado history, the state insurance commissioner...
U.S. Hurricane Victims Want Improved Disaster Relief, With Faster Money, Less Red Tape
Oct 31 2022 // Survivors of storms that pounded several U.S. states say the nation’s disaster aid system is broken and that they want reforms to get money into victims’ hands faster, with less red tape. On the 10th...
Hurricane Ian’s Lucrative Cleanup Deals Generating New Tempests
Oct 30 2022 // It has been a month since Hurricane Ian wiped out parts of southwest Florida. Now multimillion-dollar cleanup contracts are generating new tempests in the Category 4 storm’s wake. Contractors who remove debris and...
Hurricane Ian Fallout, Inflation Among Talking Points at AAIS Pulse
Oct 28 2022 // The enormous amount of uninsured loss from Hurricane Ian will lead to a “veritable swamp” of trial lawyers waiting to sue the insurance industry, according to one industry expert at AAIS Pulse. “This...
Swiss Re Posts Q3 Loss on Hit From Hurricane Ian, Signals Price Hikes
Oct 28 2022 // Swiss Re reported a third-quarter loss of $442 million driven by claims tied to the damage from hurricane Ian, and signaled that renewal prices would jump next year. The Zurich-based reinsurer’s key unit saw $2.5...
Judge Threatens to Sanction Law Firm that Filed Hundreds of La. Hurricane Lawsuits
Oct 27 2022 // A federal judge in Louisiana is threatening to fine a Houston-based law firm $200 for each duplicate or baseless lawsuit he finds among the 1,642 that the firm has filed against insurers for alleged hurricane damages. US...
Missouri Town ‘Devastated’ by Wildfire
Oct 26 2022 // WOOLDRIDGE, Mo. (AP) – Roughly half of a small Missouri town burned Saturday after a wildfire spread quickly from a farm field and destroyed or heavily damaged 23 buildings, officials said. No one died and only one...
Viewpoint: Ranking Hurricane Ian Among the 10 Worst Natural Disasters in U.S. History
Oct 26 2022 // We are in the early stages of sifting through the debris of Hurricane Ian and calculating the financial and human toll it took after coming ashore in Southwest Florida with 150 mph winds and 20 inches of rain. The insured...
Rural New Mexico Eyes Insurance Fight Amid Wildfires
Oct 26 2022 // ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) – Manuel and Marcy Silva combed through the charred rubble that used to be their home, searching for any salvageable bits in the wake of the largest wildfire in New Mexico history. Manuel found two...
Hurricane Ian Came at the Worst Possible Time for SW Florida Agriculture
Oct 24 2022 // Hurricane Ian made landfall in southwest Florida at the worst possible time for many in the agricultural community, cutting a path through the heart of Florida’s citrus belt and smashing tomato fields just before the...
Florida Offering $5 Million to Help Needy Hurricane Victims Pay Insurance Deductibles
Oct 24 2022 // The Florida Housing Finance Corp. is providing $5 million to help low- to moderate-income families and individuals in six counties hit by Hurricane Ian to pay their homeowners’ property insurance deductibles, Gov....
Munich Re Estimates $1.6 Billion Hit From Hurricane Ian Could Affect 2022 Targets
Oct 21 2022 // Munich Re said it will probably take a hit of about 1.6 billion euros ($1.6 billion) after hurricane Ian led to massive damages in Florida, and warned reaching its full-year profit goal has become “significantly more...
All The Latest Insurance Company Estimates: Hurricane Ian Losses
Oct 21 2022 // Just a few days into earnings season for the third quarter, a number of carriers have published loss estimates for insurance claims from Hurricane Ian, or prewarned investors about loss figures that will dent their bottom...
Report: Hurricane Ian Farm Loss Could Reach $1.56 Billion
Oct 20 2022 // Agriculture losses in Florida from Hurricane Ian’s high winds and drenching rains could reach $1.56 billion, with citrus, cattle, vegetable and melon operations among the hardest hit, the University of Florida...
Pakistan’s Catastrophic Flood Damage Estimated to Cost $40 Billion: Officials
Oct 20 2022 // The damage from this summer’s catastrophic flooding in Pakistan is now estimated at $40 billion, as much as 25% higher than projections a month ago in another blow to the cash-strapped country. The new estimate was...
Arch Capital Estimates Q3 Catastrophe Losses Could Hit $560 Million
Oct 19 2022 // Arch Capital Group Ltd., the Bermuda-based re/insurer, reports that its 2022 third quarter results will be negatively affected by claims from global catastrophe events such as Hurricane Ian, U.S. convective storms, Typhoon...
Hurricane Fiona Breaks New Records in Atlantic Canada With Insured Damage of C$660M
Oct 19 2022 // Hurricane Fiona is estimated to have caused C$660 million (US$436.8 million) in insured damage, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), which quoted initial estimates from Catastrophe Indices and Quantification...
Swiss Re Expects Claims From Hurricane Ian to Bring Q3 Loss
Oct 18 2022 // Swiss Re forecast on Tuesday a third-quarter net loss of around $500 million after the reinsurance company absorbed preliminary claims from Hurricane Ian of approximately $1.3 billion. “While the 2022 target of 10%...
5.0 Quake Confirmed During Hawaii’s Mauna Loa Volcano Unrest
Oct 17 2022 // A magnitude 5.0 earthquake was the strongest of a series of temblors that struck Friday on Hawaii’s Mauna Loa, the largest active volcano on the planet that scientists say is in a “state of heightened...
Lessons from Hurricane Michael Being Applied to Ian Recovery in SW Florida
Oct 17 2022 // Four years before Category 4 Ian wiped out parts of southwest Florida, the state’s Panhandle had its own encounter with an even stronger hurricane, Michael. The Category 5 storm all but destroyed one town, fractured...
