A powerful earthquake that rocked the eastern Caribbean last month has for the first time triggered use of an insurance pool that provides emergency cash to regional islands after a significant natural disaster. The magnitude-7.4 quake, which was centered beneath …
The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel on the Big Island of Hawaii has sued one of its insurance carriers for denying a $20 million claim stemming from last year’s earthquakes. The hotel has been closed for repairs and renovations since temblors …
Maryland’s Howard County has pulled the plug on its earthquake hotline. County Fire Department Captain Ryan Miller says the county now has other ways for residents to report and receive information during a disaster. And, he adds, earthquakes are rare …
The debate over climate change captured the world’s attention, including the insurance industry’s, in 2007, while major hurricanes spared the United States’ coastline. The soft market took hold of virtually all segments of the insurance market and even buyers in …
While 2007 was a surprisingly calm year for hurricanes, that doesn’t mean Mother Nature didn’t have a tantrum or two. In 2007, the West faced its share of disasters, with freezes, floods and fires making news headlines from California all …
Munich Re’s loss figures for 2007 from natural catastrophes concludes that “despite the general absence of extreme events, overall economic losses had reached $75 billion by the end of December – an increase of 50 percent on 2006 ($50 billion).” …
While winter storms do not attract the attention of mega-catastrophes such as hurricanes and earthquakes, these smaller events can add up to impact insurers’ bottom lines. However, insurers can now avail themselves of such risks by using new technology to …
Boston-based AIR Worldwide has issued a bulletin indicating that insured losses from a recent strong earthquake in New Zealand “are unlikely to exceed NZD 250 million” [$191.6 million]. The quake struck about 25 miles southwest of the coastal city of …
Louisiana Insurance Commissioner James Donelon believes there is “light at the end of the tunnel” for the property insurance market in his state. The devastation of the coastal areas in 2005 via Hurricanes Katrina and Rita threw a wrench into …
Following are the top news stories that occurred in the West in 2007. Refer to the text on the left for details. 1. Freezing temperatures Freezing temperatures in January wreaked havoc on California’s citrus crops. 2. Flood zone remapping The …
