2018 catastrophes News

Final Insured Losses for Europe’s Cyclone Burglind Reach €756M ($862.1M): PERILS

The final estimate of insured property losses from Europe’s Extratropical Cyclone Burglind, also known as Eleanor, have risen to €756 million ($862.1 million), according to PERILS, the independent Zurich-based organization that provides industry-wide catastrophe insurance data. PERILS’ fourth and final …

January Renewals Show Higher Prices for Clients with Poor Loss Records: Willis Re

Reinsurance placements at Jan. 1, 2019 highlight a pricing gap between accounts with peak peril exposures, or poor loss records, and the rest, with many reinsurers placing emphasis on the quality of client counterparties, according to the latest 1st View …

Reinsurance Prices Drop – Despite 2018’s Big Natural Catastrophe Losses: JLT Re

JLT Re’s global property-catastrophe reinsurance index fell 1.2 percent in Jan. 1 policy renewals, the broker said on Wednesday, dashing the industry’s hopes of higher reinsurance premiums after a second straight year of big losses. Reinsurance prices, chiefly set in …

Tropical Storm Usman Becomes Philippines’ 2nd Deadliest Weather Disaster in 2018

Tropical Storm Usman, which entered the Philippines on Christmas Day, emerged as the deadliest weather disaster for the country this year following Typhoon Mangkhut in September. Usman, a slow-moving storm with winds of up to 55 kilometers (34 miles) an …

New South Wales Hailstorm Triggers Australia Catastrophe Declaration

The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) last week declared a catastrophe following storms that caused extensive hail and water damage across Sydney and the Central Coast in New South Wales (NSW). As of Dec. 21, insurers had received more than …

Indonesia Volcano Alert Widened as Ash Clouds Affect Aviation After Deadly Tsunami

Indonesian authorities widened an area marked as a danger zone around the Mount Anak Krakatau as the volcano continued to send hot ash clouds into the sky after a weekend tsunami triggered by a landslide killed more than 400 people. …

Sweden’s Wildfires Highlight Cost of Rapidly Changing Climate in Europe

Hannele Arvonen, the owner of one of Sweden’s largest lumber yards, is spending the winter months planning for a new and unexpected threat to her business: regular wildfires raging just south of the Arctic Circle. Her business, Setra Group AB, …

Insurers’ Firefighting Teams Move to Limit Damage from California Wildfires

California’s raging wildfires are so bad that American International Group Inc. and Chubb Ltd. are deploying teams of specialists and former firefighters to spray retardants on homes. The season may soon rank among the industry’s most costly. The latest blazes …

Deaths, Damages Continue to Rise in California’s Most Destructive Wildfires

The most destructive wildfires in California’s history have killed at least 31 people and forced tens of thousands more to evacuate as firefighters struggle to gain control amid swirling winds. The so-called Camp Fire in Northern California and the Woolsey …

Italy’s Atlantia Sets Aside $400M to Rebuild Genoa Bridge; Reveals Insurer Dispute

Italian infrastructure group Atlantia has set aside 350 million euros ($400 million) to cover the estimated cost of rebuilding the Genoa bridge which collapsed in August and compensating the families of those killed. The viaduct disaster claimed 43 lives, sparking …