Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Terrorism insurance market hits federal radar
Oct 9 2006 // Two new federal reports have found that the long-term development of the private terrorism insurance market remains at best uncertain due to the unpredictable nature of terrorist attacks. Both reports acknowledged that a...
Catlin’s CEO Assesses ‘Benign’ Hurricane Season
Oct 5 2006 // Stephen Catlin, the chief executive of international specialty property/casualty insurer and reinsurer Catlin Group Limited, Forecast a decline in premiums for non-catastrophe exposed classes of insurance and reinsurance,...
Report Says Hurricanes Turned La. Marshland Into Open Water
Oct 5 2006 // New estimates on wetlands loss from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita show that the storms turned 217 square miles of coastal marsh in Louisiana into open water, according to U.S. Geological Survey report. The agency released...
Updated Atlantic Hurricane Forecast Indicates Below-Average Activity
Oct 5 2006 // Colorado State University hurricane expert William Gray downgraded his forecast for the 2006 Atlantic storm season again this week, predicting one more hurricane, two more named storms but no intense hurricanes. The new...
Banking and Insurance Execs to Spend More for Anti-Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing Compliance
Oct 4 2006 // Banking and insurance executives overwhelmingly plan to spend more, especially on staff, to help strengthen their anti-money laundering (AML) and terrorist financing compliance programs, according to new research by the...
Treasury Report on Terrorism Insurance Says Backstop Negatively Affects Private Capacity
Oct 3 2006 // A new federal report has found that the long-term development of the private terrorism insurance market remains at best uncertain due to the unpredictable nature of terrorist attacks. The President’s Working Group on...
Catlin Enters $200 Million Cat Swap
Oct 2 2006 // The Bermuda-based Catlin Group Limited, an international specialty P/C insurer and reinsurer, announced that an operating subsidiary, Catlin Insurance Company Ltd. of Bermuda, “intends, subject to completion of...
P/C Insurers’ Profitability Drops in First-Half of 2006
Oct 2 2006 // The U.S. property/casualty insurance industry’s net income after taxes fell 9.3 percent to $28.3 billion in first-half 2006 from $31.2 billion in first-half 2005 as investment results deteriorated. Reflecting the...
National Science Board Urges More Coordinated Hurricane Research
Oct 2 2006 // Hurricanes cost taxpayers billions of dollars, but the government has not invested enough money in understanding them, according to a federal report that calls for more coordinated research. The National Science...
Hurricane Research Bill Introduced in U.S. Senate
Oct 2 2006 // U.S. Senator Mel Martinez, R-Fla., has introduced bipartisan legislation to implement a national hurricane research initiative designed to better research, predict and prepare for hurricanes. Martinez crafted the proposal...
Officials Seek Voluntary Evacuations for Dwellers near Large Wildfire
Sep 27 2006 // Flames jumped over a fire line Monday and quickly moved toward a remote community northwest of Los Angeles, prompting authorities to issue an evacuation for about 500 people threatened by one of the largest and...
Industry to Congress: Permanent Solution to Terrorism Insurance Vital
Sep 27 2006 // Insurers, agents and business groups called on Congress to create a permanent solution safeguarding the economy against future terrorist attacks at congressional hearing today, “Protecting Americans from Catastrophic...
Hawaii Web Site To Educate Homeowners on Hurricane Retrofits
Sep 26 2006 // Hawaii’s Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs’ Insurance Division has created a new website: www.hurricaneretrofits.hawaii.gov, which details the State’s Loss Mitigation Grant Program for Hawaii...
Insurers Reject Notion of TRIA Renewal for Nuclear-Biological Terrorism Risk Only
Sep 26 2006 // A new federal government report concludes that a totally private market solution to insuring against certain terrorist attacks is unlikely in the near future. The report covers the risk of nuclear, biological, chemical or...
Declarations
Sep 25 2006 // “We have survived two devastating storms and I will not allow our citizens to fall victim to fraud or abuse as we rebuild Louisiana. I am pleased that the U.S. Department of Justice and our state Attorney General...
Susan Voss, Iowa, Commissioner of Insurance
Sep 25 2006 // Iowa is perceived by other states as a model in terms of the number of companies domiciled in the state and those wanting to do business there, as well as having a very stable legislative and regulatory environment. But...
Agriculture industry starved for ways to reduce terrorism targets
Sep 25 2006 // The war against terrorism may be focused mostly in the Middle East, but people also should pay attention closer to home — especially to the U.S. agriculture industry, according to Dr. Jerry R. Gillespie, director of...
A year past Katrina: What has been learned?
Sep 25 2006 // Peak hurricane season has arrived. Despite this season’s slow start, people who live along the coast are constantly aware that the next big storm could take shape at any time. This year, however, everyone is also...
Commentary: Newton’s Third Law
Sep 25 2006 // Sir Isaac Newton’s third law of motion — “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction” — wouldn’t appear to have much to do with the insurance industry. If the Street...
P/C insurers’ performance exceeding Fitch estimates for 2006
Sep 25 2006 // The U.S. property/casualty insurance industry showed continued favorable and improved operating performance in the first half of 2006 and, based on results and barring any unusual events going forward, the industry is...
