Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
January 2020 Reinsurance Renewals Varied Significantly, Brokers Say
Jan 13 2020 // The January 2020 reinsurance renewals saw significant variation in pricing and capacity depending on geography, line of business, cedents’ loss record and client relationships, according to two reports published by...
Puerto Rico Hit with Second Earthquake on Southern Coast; 4,000 People in Shelters
Jan 12 2020 // A magnitude 5.9 quake shook Puerto Rico on Saturday (January 11) causing millions of dollars of damage along the island’s southern coast, where previous recent quakes have toppled homes and schools. The U.S....
Australia’s Bushfires Could Surpass 2009’s Costly Season; Analysts, Insurers Comment
Jan 10 2020 // Australia’s bushfire season has months to run and could easily surpass the most costly fire season, 2009’s Black Saturday fires in Victoria, which had a price tag of an estimated A$4.4 billion (US$3 billion),...
Carpenter’s Global Property Catastrophe Index Rises by 5% in January Renewals
Jan 10 2020 // Pricing corrections in the property catastrophe reinsurance market over the last few years have been localized and mitigated to some extent by sufficient levels of capacity, according to Guy Carpenter in its January...
More Than a Dozen Florida Insurers Facing Ratings Downgrades
Jan 9 2020 // The rating agency responsible for assigning financial stability ratings (FSR) to more than 40 Florida domestic insurers has warned that several carriers will receive downgrades due to deteriorating conditions in the...
New York Governor Lays out Aggressive Climate Change Plan
Jan 9 2020 // New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is proposing an aggressive climate change-fighting campaign for his state that includes a $3-billion bond act that would be put on the ballot this November. Cuomo, who says that money would go to...
Hundreds Left Homeless, Thousands Without Power from Puerto Rico Earthquake
Jan 9 2020 // Cars, cots and plastic chairs became temporary beds for hundreds of families who lost their homes in southwest Puerto Rico as a flurry of earthquakes struck the island, one of them the strongest in a century. The magnitude...
Beazley and RenaissanceRe Launch Cyber Catastrophe Cover Backed by Capital Markets
Jan 9 2020 // Specialist insurer Beazley and reinsurer RenaissanceRe have jointly launched a product that provides Beazley with additional catastrophe cover for cyber events. The majority of the security behind the deal will be provided...
New Policy Contracts Now in Effect at Texas Windstorm Insurer
Jan 8 2020 // Texas’ insurer of last resort for wind and hail along the coast says new terms and conditions for policies with an effective date on or after January 1, 2020, are now in place. The updated coverages, terms, and...
Natural Catastrophes Cost $150B in 2019, with Insurers Paying $52B: Munich Re
Jan 8 2020 // Natural catastrophes caused overall losses of US$150 billion during 2019, including insured losses of about US$52 billion, which matches the average of the past 30 years, according to Munich Re’s catastrophe...
Tornado Damages Buildings in Central Florida City
Jan 7 2020 // The National Weather Service said a tornado touched down in a central Florida community Saturday and caused around $20,000 in damage to city property. The National Weather Service confirmed the tornado traveled a quarter...
Update: Australia’s Firefighters Take Advantage of Cooler Weather to Help Quell Wildfires
Jan 7 2020 // Firefighters are taking advantage of cooler weather to quell southeastern Australia’s wildfires that have killed at least 24 people and prompted stirring messages from stars at the Golden Globes. Some 130 blazes...
California Eyes Climate Bond to Prepare For Disasters
Jan 6 2020 // In a state burdened by billions of dollars in wildfire damage, California lawmakers are hoping for an advance loan before the next climate-fueled catastrophe hits. Lawmakers in the Democratic-dominated state Legislature...
Pool Re Takes Steps to Make Terrorism Cover More Accessible to U.K. Businesses
Jan 6 2020 // Pool Re, Britain’s leading terrorism reinsurer, announced it is taking steps to help reduce costs and improve the accessibility of terrorism insurance for businesses in the U.K., in part by expanding the definition...
January 2020 Reinsurance Renewals Varied Significantly, Brokers Say
Jan 6 2020 // The January 2020 reinsurance renewals saw significant variation in pricing and capacity depending on geography, line of business, cedents’ loss record and client relationships, according to two reports published by...
Australia Sees No End to Unprecedented Wildfire Crisis
Jan 6 2020 // Exhausted firefighters welcomed cooler weather and patchy rain in blaze-ravaged southeastern Australia Monday after a calamitous few days, even as authorities warn of a return to dangerous conditions later this week. With...
U.K. MGA Optio Buys Political Violence and Terrorism MGA, Newbridge Risk Partners
Jan 3 2020 // Optio, the London-based MGA that comprises Ascent Underwriting, Cove Programs and broker Bay Risk Services, announced it has acquired specialist political-violence and terrorism MGA Newbridge Risk Partners from Castel...
Update: The Escalating Costs of Australia’s Wildfire Disaster
Jan 3 2020 // Australia is in the grip of deadly wildfires burning across the country, triggering an emotive debate about the impact of climate change in the world’s driest-inhabited continent. The unprecedented scale of the...
Australia Breaks Records for High Temperatures, Low Rainfall as Wildfires Keep Raging
Jan 2 2020 // As massive wildfires devastate swathes of Australia and supercharge the debate over the impact of climate change, government data show the nation has never suffered a hotter or drier year than 2019. The average temperature...
Insurance Journal’s Top 10 South Central Region Stories of 2019
Jan 2 2020 // It almost seemed like there was a major fire or explosion per month at one petrochemical facility or another in the South Central region last year. That’s not really the case, but there were a number of high-profile...
