Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Agents Fear N.Y. Coast Insurance Market Worse; Pols Weigh Options
Oct 11 2007 // New York lawmakers are considering taking action to improve coastal insurance availability while insurance agents are telling them they fear market restrictions are worsening. Insurance companies, meanwhile, claim the...
Property/Casualty Insurers to Pay $1.13 Billion in 3Q Cat Claims
Oct 11 2007 // U.S. property/casualty insurers are expected to pay homeowners and businesses an estimated $1.125 billion for third-quarter property losses resulting from a total of six catastrophes in 11 states, according to preliminary...
RAND Study Finds Taxpayers, Policyholders Benefit from Terrorism Insurance Backstop
Oct 10 2007 // Taxpayers save money and businesses are better protected with the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA) in place than if the act is allowed to expire, according to a recent study by RAND Corp. The analysis found that TRIA,...
Baltimore Feels Small Earthquake
Oct 10 2007 // The U.S. Geological Survey’s National Earthquake Information Center says a minor earthquake was sensed near Baltimore, Md. NEIC Geologist Angel Gutierrez says preliminary estimates put the quake at a magnitude of...
Calif. Earthquake Bill Receives Criticism, Could Raise Rates
Oct 10 2007 // Critics of a bill recently signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger say more than 760,000 California homeowners who buy earthquake insurance through a state-run authority could see their premiums rise . But the measure’s...
Proponents push plans for natural catastrophe insurance solutions
Oct 8 2007 // The need for solutions to address insurance costs and availability in natural catastrophe-vulnerable U.S. coastal regions — including a federal safety net — was the general theme at a public hearing in Mobile,...
From the Big Apple to the Corn State
Oct 8 2007 // From the executive office of the Greater New York Mutual Insurance Companies on Madison Avenue in the heart of New York City, Warren Heck, chairman and chief executive officer, can see Illinois. “It’s...
House-passed flood insurance bill provides optional windstorm coverage
Oct 8 2007 // The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a measure updating the nation’s flood insurance program that will give homeowners the option of purchasing windstorm coverage as part of their flood policy. The...
News Currents
Oct 8 2007 // Proponents push plans for natural catastrophe insurance solutions Federal backstop proposals aired at NAIC public hearing in Alabama The need for solutions to address insurance costs and availability in natural...
NATURAL CATASTROPHES
Oct 8 2007 // 2006 MARKET SHARE For insurers in Texas BROOKE CORP. LAWSUITS Firm says it has not misled agents
Editor’s Note: Wind, water and legislative storm
Oct 8 2007 // More than two years have gone by, but no one can forget the devastating effects Hurricane Katrina had on the Gulf Coast. Yet legislators and industry leaders continue to debate how to prevent future problems associated...
News Currents
Oct 8 2007 // House-passed flood insurance bill provides optional windstorm coverage The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a measure updating the nation’s flood insurance program that will give homeowners the option of...
N.Y. Proposes ‘Rainy Day’ Catastrophe Insurance Fund With Eventual Tax Break
Oct 5 2007 // Insurance companies providing homeowners, business and other property insurance in New York State would be required to create a catastrophe reserve fund to help pay claims caused by hurricanes and other natural disasters...
Tornado Cuts a 20-mile Path of Damage in Central Iowa
Oct 4 2007 // Officials were inspecting damage Monday, Oct. 1st from a tornado that cut a 20-mile long path across four central Iowa counties. The tornado dropped out of storms that developed late Sunday afternoon, bringing high wind,...
For Small Fla. Insurer, Sunshine State Brings Storm Clouds
Oct 3 2007 // From “Happy Days” to “The Perfect Storm” is how one Florida insurance executive describes her state’s turbulent and defining years between 2003 and 2007 – and she isn’t talking...
Alaska Fire Authorities Launch Interior Wildfire Protection Plan
Oct 2 2007 // Alaska forestry officials are planning a series of prescribed burns to torch debris piles that have built up over the past three years. It’s part of a wildfire protection effort being implemented by the Alaska...
Magnitude 7.4 Quake Strikes South of New Zealand
Oct 1 2007 // A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.4 occurred south of New Zealand on Sunday and there may be a chance of tsunamis, Japanese monitors said. There was no immediate report of injuries, damage or...
Tropical Storm Melissa Strengthens in Atlantic; Lorenzo’s Rains Kill 5
Oct 1 2007 // Floodwaters from Hurricane Lorenzo were receding Sept. 29 in eastern Mexico after rains triggered mudslides and floods that killed at least five people and drove tens of thousands from their homes. Meanwhile, Tropical...
Hurricane Lorenzo Strikes Mexico
Sep 28 2007 // Lorenzo, a category 1 hurricane, has come ashore along the east-central coast of Mexico. The storm is “moving toward the west near 8 mph [13 km/hr]” according to the latest bulletin from the National Hurricane...
State Updates Map of Ohio Earthquakes for First Time since 2002
Sep 28 2007 // For the first time in five years, the state has revised its map showing where earthquakes have shaken Ohio. The Department of Natural Resources says more than 30 quakes have been recorded in and around the state since the...
