Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Judge Wants PG&E Power Restrictions for Next California Wildfire Season
Jan 10 2019 // A U.S. judge has proposed restricting utility PG&E Corp from using power lines deemed to be unsafe during high winds in the 2019 California fire season, adding another complication for the California utility as it...
California Governor Proposes $150M in Wildfire Investments, 911 Fee
Jan 10 2019 // California Gov. Gavin Newsom has pledged fresh investments to prevent, fight and escape wildfires, including millions to help local governments improve their communication during emergencies and a fee to fund an update for...
Parametric Catastrophe Facility CCRIF Adds Panama to Growing Roster of Members
Jan 10 2019 // Cayman Islands-based catastrophe facility CCRIF SPC has increased its membership with the addition of Panama, which purchased parametric insurance cover for excess rainfall. CCRIF’s membership now stands at 21...
Texas Regulators Urge Flexibility in Claim/Dispute Deadlines for Windstorm Insurer
Jan 10 2019 // The Texas Department of Insurance in its 2018 Biennial Report to the legislature has recommended amending state law to permit more flexibility in time limits for handling and resolving claims and disputes brought to the...
Northern Oklahoma Shaken by 3.4 Magnitude Earthquake
Jan 9 2019 // The U.S. Geological Survey says a 3.4 magnitude earthquake has shaken parts of northern Oklahoma. Geologists say the temblor was recorded at 10:43 a.m. Monday less than 1 mile (1 kilometer) northeast of Medford near the...
Wildfires, Dynamex Dominate California Wholesaler Conference
Jan 8 2019 // Wildfires and the Dynamex decision. Those two topics dominated discussions at an insurance wholesaler conference this week. The California Wholesaler Association conference in La Jolla, Calif. from Sunday through today...
Florida Courts Bogged Down by New Gun Law, Hurricane Suits
Jan 8 2019 // Florida’s new gun law is keeping courts busy, and the state Supreme Court also says lawsuits over hurricane disputes could be on the rise. The Florida Supreme Court said Dec. 28 that 100 petitions a month have been...
California Wildfires, Hurricane Michael Top List of 2018’s Costliest Natural Disasters: Munich Re
Jan 8 2019 // The costliest natural catastrophes occurred in the United States in 2018 with one of California’s devastating wildfires and Hurricane Michael topping the list, according to Munich Re. A report from Munich Re on last...
Allstate, State Farm, USAA Sue California Utility Over Wildfires
Jan 8 2019 // Several insurance companies have filed lawsuits blaming Pacific Gas & Electric Co. for a deadly California wildfire that destroyed 14,000 homes and triggered billions of dollars in insurance claims. The lawsuits filed...
No Tornado Deaths in Oklahoma in 2018; First Time Since 2006
Jan 7 2019 // The National Weather Service says no one was killed in a tornado in Oklahoma in 2018, the first time that the state has not recorded a tornado-related death since 2006. The Oklahoman reports that just 41 tornadoes were...
Tropical Storm Pabuk Weakens After Battering South Thailand
Jan 7 2019 // Thailand’s most powerful tropical storm in decades has weakened after strong wind and flash floods disrupted oil production and flights, leaving thousands of tourists stranded near the nation’s southern...
Western Region Could See Action on Disaster Mitigation, Independent Contractors, Workers’ Comp
Jan 7 2019 // Most eyeballs were on California during the midterm elections in November, with polar opposite candidates facing off in the race for governor as well as the office of insurance commissioner. As in most years, Democrats...
5 Lessons to Take Away from the California Wildfires
Jan 7 2019 // The California wildfires of 2018 were devastating, burning hundreds of thousands of acres, costing numerous lives and destroying thousands of properties. The California Department of Insurance in early December put the...
AM Best: Negative Rating Implications from Wildfires for California Capital and Subsidiaries
Jan 7 2019 // AM Best has placed under review with negative implications the Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings of “a-” of California Capital Insurance Co. and its...
3 Reasons Recovery from Hurricane Florence is Different from Hurricane Michael
Jan 7 2019 // Lessons from Past Storms and Economic Changes Suggest Rebuilding Efforts After Florence Will Be Arduous As the saying goes – location is everything. Following the two largest U.S. hurricanes this year, Hurricane...
Los Angeles Releases Earthquake Warning App
Jan 4 2019 // Los Angeles has released an earthquake warning app that could give LA County residents precious seconds to drop, cover and hold on in the event of a quake. The city announced this week that ShakeAlertLA is available for...
Southern California City Asking Residents for Suggestions on Battling Climate Change
Jan 3 2019 // The city of Long Beach, Calif. is soliciting help from its citizens to come up with a plan to deal with climate change. The coastal city of roughly half-a-million, which was an early adopter of the ban on plastic bags and...
California Wildfires: Where Do We Go From Here?
Jan 2 2019 // This post is part of a series sponsored by CoreLogic. The last few months of 2018 were record-setting and heartbreaking for the survivors of wildfires in California. The Camp Fire in Butte County quickly became the most...
Prosecutors Say California Fires May Mean PG&E Violated Criminal Sentence
Jan 2 2019 // A California utility’s role in igniting wildfires last year could allow a judge to find that it violated terms of its criminal sentence in a 2010 gas pipeline explosion that killed eight people, federal prosecutors...
Reinsurance Prices Drop – Despite 2018’s Big Natural Catastrophe Losses: JLT Re
Jan 2 2019 // JLT Re’s global property-catastrophe reinsurance index fell 1.2 percent in Jan. 1 policy renewals, the broker said on Wednesday, dashing the industry’s hopes of higher reinsurance premiums after a second...
