EQECAT Estimates Dean Losses Between $1.5-$ 3 Billion

Oakland Calif.-based EQECAT, Inc. issued a preliminary assessment of the insured losses from Hurricane Dean of between $1.5 and $3 billion. The estimate covers damages incurred by the hurricane’s passage through the Lesser Antilles as far as Jamaica.

EQECAT said its “estimates will be updated as additional information about the storm’s characteristics becomes available.”

Early reports from Martinique and St. Lucia reported severe damages to the banana crop on which the islands are heavily dependent. French officials have indicated that Martinique’s losses from destroyed banana and sugar cane plantations, as well as damages to infrastructure, will surpass €200 million ($270 million).

EQECAT noted: “Beyond wind damage to commercial and residential fixed structures, such as office buildings, factories, warehouses, and homes, EQECAT’s insured loss estimates include business interruption, as a result of the destruction of property; and demand surge, which occurs when the demand for products and services to repair damage significantly exceeds the regional supply. Thus, these products and services may have to be brought to the region quickly from distant points, resulting in additional costs for transportation, packaging and manufacture.”

Excluded from EQECAT’s insured loss estimates are losses related to flooding, private and commercial automobiles and similar vehicles, and marine assets, such as boats.

Source: EQECAT, news reports

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