Floods News

U.S. Storms in March Will Cost Insurers $2 Billion: Aon Benfield’s Cat Report

Insurers face a $2.0 billion bill following seven severe storm events across multiple states in March, according to Impact Forecasting, Aon Benfield’s catastrophe model development team. Overall economic losses sustained to property, infrastructure and agriculture across the U.S. from these …

UK’s Flood Re Launches to Bring Affordable Flood Cover to Homeowners

The U.K.’s new joint industry and government sponsored reinsurance scheme for flood risk began operating today (April 4). Designed to help provide access to affordable flood insurance cover for households at the highest risk, Flood Re expects up to 350,000 …

2015 Global Insured Losses Lowest Since 2009 Despite El Niño Effects: Carpenter

One of the strongest El Niño periods on record and a positive phase of the North Atlantic Oscillation were the climate drivers in 2015 that led to an exceptional season of Pacific tropical storms and severe windstorms and flooding in …

PERILS Raises Insured Property Loss Estimate for UK Storms Eva & Frank to £578M

Property insurance market losses from flooding brought by UK storms Eva and Frank have risen to £578 million ($818.9 million), compared to an initial loss estimate of £526 million ($745.2 million), according to PERILS, the independent Zurich-based organization that provides …

Britain Raises Insurance Premium Tax to 10% to Fund Flood Defenses

Britain’s finance minister George Osborne said on Wednesday he would raise the tax on motor and home insurance premiums by 0.5 percentage points to 10 percent to fund flood defenses, boosting insurance shares as the rise was smaller than anticipated. …

El Niño Wreaks Havoc in February with Fiji Cyclone, Floods & Drought: Aon Report

The Southern Hemisphere registered its strongest tropical cyclone on record during February with Tropical Cyclone Winston, according to Impact Forecasting, Aon Benfield’s catastrophe model development team. With maximum sustained winds of 295 kph (185 mph), Tropical Cyclone Winston made landfall …

PERILS Reduces Loss Estimate to £662M for Floods from UK’s Storm Desmond

PERILS AG disclosed its second, revised loss estimate for the floods which hit the UK from Dec. 4 to 24 following Storm Desmond. The latest estimate of the property insurance market loss is £662 million (933.2 million), compared to the …

Swiss Re’s 2015 Net Income Rises 31% to $4.6B; Q4 Profit Up to $938M

Swiss Re AG reported fourth-quarter profit that beat estimates after a quiet year for natural catastrophes and announced that Christian Mumenthaler, head of the company’s main reinsurance unit, will take over as chief executive officer on July 1. Net income …

Fiji’s Strongest-Ever Cyclone Flattens Entire Villages; Death Toll Rises

The death toll from the strongest tropical cyclone ever to hit Fiji climbed to at least 20 as aerial surveillance of affected areas showed entire villages were obliterated as the Category-5 storm roared across the South Pacific nation at the …

Allianz Q4 2015 Profit Rises to $1.6B on Cat Claims; Lower Than Analyst Estimates

Allianz SE missed analyst estimates for fourth-quarter profit because of claims from natural catastrophes. Net income at Europe’s biggest insurer increased to 1.42 billion euros ($1.6 billion) in the quarter from 1.22 billion euros [$1.3 billion] a year earlier, the …