Research and Trends News

Global Natural Catastrophes Cost $210 Billion in 2020: Munich Re

Natural catastrophes around the world resulted in $210 billion in damage in 2020, with the United States especially hard hit by hurricanes and wildfires, a top insurer said on Thursday. The damage, tallied by the German reinsurer Munich Re , …

COVID Lawsuits by State and Key Trends in Workplace Litigation for 2021: Seyfarth

The coronavirus pandemic contributed to a spike in workplace lawsuits in 2020 and the number is only expected to grow in 2021, according to legal experts. At the same time, the incoming Biden Administration is expected to more aggressively enforce …

Final Insured Losses for Australian Bushfires of 2019/2020 Estimated at A$1.866B

Insured losses for the Australian bushfires of 2019/2020 rose to A$1.866 billion (US$1.441 billion), according to estimates issued by PERILS, the independent Zurich-based organization that provides industry-wide catastrophe insurance data. This fourth and final industry loss estimate is a slight …

January Renewals Saw Some of Sharpest Price Hikes in Recent Years: Howden

Lower investment yields, adverse catastrophe loss development, higher loss cost trends, concerns over climate change, and, of course, the pandemic coalesced to bring some of the sharpest price increases in recent memory during the Jan. 1 reinsurance renewals, according to …

Riskiest Counties for Natural Disasters Are Not Always Where People Think

Spending her life in Los Angeles, Morgan Andersen knows natural disasters all too well. In college, an earthquake shook her home hard. Her grandfather was affected by recent wildfires in neighboring Orange County. “It’s just that constant reminder, `Oh yeah, …

World’s Largest Insurers 2020: AM Best Ranks UnitedHealth, Allianz on Top

UnitedHealth Group Inc. takes the top spot in AM Best’s ranking of the world’s 25 largest insurance companies for a sixth straight year, with $189.7 billion in net premiums written (NPW) in 2019. In addition, Allianz SE and Prudential Financial, …

Global Aviation Deaths Rose in 2020, Although Number of Crashes Fell

The number of people killed in large commercial airplane crashes rose in 2020 to 299 worldwide, even as the number of crashes fell by more than 50%, a Dutch consulting firm said on Friday. Aviation consulting firm To70 said in …

Cyber Attacks Cost Russian Companies and Citizens $49B in 2020: Sberbank

MOSCOW – Cyber attacks have cost Russian companies and citizens up to 3.6 trillion roubles ($49 billion) this year, the country’s largest lender Sberbank said. Russia has encouraged its citizens to switch to bank cards and limit cash use to …

Google Adds Extra Scrutiny of Its Scientists’ Research on ‘Sensitive Topics’

Alphabet Inc.’s Google this year moved to tighten control over its scientists’ papers by launching a “sensitive topics” review, and in at least three cases requested authors refrain from casting its technology in a negative light, according to internal communications …

Masks Help Curb COVID-19’s Spread But May Not be Enough at Close Distances

Simply wearing a face mask may not be enough to prevent the spread of COVID-19 without social distancing. In a new project Physics of Fluids, by AIP Publishing, researchers tested how five different types of mask materials impacted the spread …