Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Ark. Gov. Declares 10 Counties Disaster Areas After Tornadoes, Storms
Feb 7 2008 // Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe has declared Baxter, Conway, Independence, Izard, Pope, Randolph, Sharp, Stone, Union and Van Buren Counties state disaster areas due to the damage caused by powerful tornadoes and violent...
Travelers Deploys Response Units to States Affected by Tornadoes
Feb 7 2008 // Travelers mobilized its catastrophe response unit Wednesday including sending four mobile claim headquarters to tornado-affected areas in Arkansas, Mississippi and Tennessee. The mobile units will be strategically...
Caribbean Cat Risk Facility Announces Changes for Renewals
Feb 6 2008 // The Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF) announced the approval of several new measures to be implemented for the 2008 renewal period. “The changes are all meant to further satisfy the objective of...
Brutal Tornadoes Lacerate Southern States Killing at Least 48 People
Feb 6 2008 // A severe weather front fell upon the Southern states inciting a series of strong tornadoes that moved across Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi and Arkansas, wreaking damage and killing at least 48. As the information of the...
Former Hurricane Program Manager to Head Ala. Emergency Agency
Feb 1 2008 // Alabama Gov. Bob Riley appointed Brock Long to serve as director of the Alabama Emergency Management Agency. Long has served in emergency management at the state and federal levels specializing in hurricane planning and...
GAO Urges Changes in Wind, Flood Damage Determinations
Feb 1 2008 // Government adjusters trying to assess the accuracy of flood claims payments from the 2005 hurricane season were hampered by a lack of access to data on wind damage from the National Flood Insurance Program and private...
Allstate 4Q Profit Falls 37% as Calif. Wildfire Losses Top $300M
Jan 31 2008 // Hit by an increase in catastrophe losses, Northbrook, Ill.-based insurer Allstate Corp. saw its profit drop by more than 37 percent in the fourth quarter of 2007 compared to the same period in 2006. The fourth quarter net...
Neb. Proposal Would Bar Gun Seizures after Catastrophes
Jan 30 2008 // Should disaster strike and chaos ensue, Nebraskans could be forced to give up their guns, under current law. That’s what happened in New Orleans, when police seized guns after Hurricane Katrina walloped the city in...
9th Windstorm Insurance Forum to Focus on Fla. Property Concerns
Jan 30 2008 // The concerns of property insurance in Florida and the perils facing the property insurance industry are some of the key issues to be addressed at the Ninth Annual Windstorm Insurance Conference, set for Feb. 4 – 7 in...
Ohio Insurance Director Issues Terrorism Risk Insurance Act Bulletin
Jan 29 2008 // Ohio Department of Insurance Director Mary Jo Hudson earlier this month issued a bulletin concerning the recent extension of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA), as enacted by Congress and signed by the President. The...
Mo. Governor Seeks Federal Help to Recover from Rare Winter Tornadoes
Jan 28 2008 // Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt is seeking federal help recovering from a storm that churned up rare winter tornadoes. Two people died, 30 others were injured and more than 400 homes were damaged in the storms that started the...
National Hurricane Center Names New Director
Jan 28 2008 // The National Hurricane Center’s new chief said he would deal with problems behind the scenes and work to boost morale among staffers who helped oust the former director for his outspokenness. Bill Read, 58, had been...
More Atlantic Hurricane Activity Doesn’t Mean More Landfall Risk
Jan 27 2008 // New research on the link between the formation of hurricanes in the Atlantic basin and U.S. landfall activity suggests that using Atlantic basin hurricane activity as a proxy for landfall activity can lead to erroneous...
La.’s Valued Policy Law: New Teeth for Hurricane Claims?
Jan 27 2008 // Property damage from hurricanes primarily comes from two sources: wind and water. Insurance coverage for property damaged by wind, and by rain water which enters the property as a result of wind damage, is generally...
Southern California Wildfire Losses Could Top $2 Billion
Jan 27 2008 // The California Department of Insurance announced that 37,117 claims have been filed since the wildfires broke out in Southern California in October 2007, and 1,531 of those claims are known to be total losses. Insurers...
Executives See Only Moderate Growth for P/C Industry in 2008
Jan 27 2008 // Property casualty insurance insiders predicted 2008 will be a year of marginal growth as continued pricing competition will keep premiums low and profits lower — although that could quickly worsen if a natural...
European Risk Managers, Industry Face New and Not so New Challenges
Jan 27 2008 // FERMA conference highlights growing importance of risk management in complex global business environment The insurance industry’s “traditional model” has become outdated and is so abstruse that the...
Agents Mind Your Es & Os
Jan 27 2008 // As insurance companies face larger, more frequent catastrophe losses, they are increasingly playing hardball with their insureds. Hurricanes, wildfires, tornadoes, floods and earthquakes can put pressure on a...
ISO: Insurers to Pay $6.5 Billion in 2007 Catastrophe Claims
Jan 27 2008 // U.S. property/casualty insurers are expected to pay homeowners and businesses $6.5 billion for 2007 property losses from 23 catastrophes — the eighth lowest cost in a decade and the seventh lowest frequency for the...
Texas Windstorm Issues Focus of Public Hearing Jan. 29
Jan 25 2008 // The Texas Department of Insurance will hold a public hearing on Jan. 29 to consider proposals by the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association that concern both residential and commercial properties. TWIA is requesting...
