Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
White Paper Voices Concern About Property Insurance Market’s Status
May 26 2006 // The insurance industry is bracing for another active hurricane season if predictions turn into reality. Most insurance companies, including the state-run insurer of last resort, have filed for rate increases as the entire...
Liberty Mutual Distributes Disaster Guides Nationwide
May 25 2006 // The 2006 hurricane season begins in one week, and homeowners from Corpus Christi to Coral Gables to Cape Cod hopefully are heeding the advice of government officials, disaster relief organizations, and insurers by taking...
High Winds Fail to Blow Up New Mexico Desert Wildfires
May 25 2006 // A desert wildfire that has burned about 8,000 acres of New Mexico grass and brush remains uncontained Tuesday, but firefighters were pleased that high winds that fanned the blaze Monday did not blow the fire out of...
Crist Reaches $609,000 Settlement from Hurricane Price Gouging
May 25 2006 // A settlement has been reached with a North Carolina-based company, resolving price gouging allegations stemming from the 2004 hurricane season, according to Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist. Southeastern Restoration,...
Arkansans Urged to Prepare Now for Possible Earthquake
May 24 2006 // The time for Arkansans to prepare for an earthquake is now, federal and state emergency officials say. The United States Geological Survey considers Arkansas among the states with a “high earthquake risk”...
PIA of La. Stresses Preparation for 2006 Hurricane Season
May 24 2006 // Due to the upcoming start of Hurricane Season on June 1, the Professional Insurance Agents (PIA) of Louisiana launched a public awareness campaign that includes the following tips for insurance consumers to prepare for the...
Floridians Urged, Buy Tax-Free Supplies Now, Prepare for Hurricanes
May 24 2006 // Floridians are being urged to take advantage of the state’s “Hurricane Preparation Tax-Free Holiday,” which continues through June 1, and to prepare for the upcoming hurricane season by Tom Gallagher,...
Hurricanes Wrecked Many Retirement Dreams
May 22 2006 // Jim and Evelyn Burke’s Pensacola Bay, Fla. home provided a dream retirement for 13 years, evenings watching purple and pink sunsets on their private dock and mornings glimpsing dolphins frolicking outside their...
Floridians Upset Over Citizens Increases
May 22 2006 // Marci L. Rose’s home and rental properties escaped serious damage when hurricanes battered the state in 2004 and 2005, but she might lose them anyway. Like thousands of Floridians, the Key West real estate attorney...
S&P Rates Mexican Quake Cat Bond Managed by Swiss Re ‘BB+’
May 22 2006 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that it has assigned its “BB+” credit ratings to the $160 million class A and B principal-at-risk notes issued by CAT-Mex Ltd. “The transaction,...
U.S. insurers withstood record catastrophe losses in 2005
May 22 2006 // Strong capitalization, sound risk management and efficient global risk sharing enabled the U.S. property/casualty insurance industry to withstand record-setting catastrophe losses in 2005, according to Frank J. Coyne,...
Tax reform, no catastrophe relief
May 22 2006 // The Texas Legislature concluded its recent special session by passing school finance and property tax reform–finally. After two regular sessions and four special sessions, Texas lawmakers were able to set aside their...
Coverage issues at core of Hurricane Katrina-related litigation
May 22 2006 // The amount of property damage caused by Hurricane Katrina in Mississippi and Louisiana has been extensively reported, as has the fact that many people in those states did not have flood insurance coverage. As a result,...
Fla. legislative package targets Citizens deficits, mitigation; establishes oversight policies
May 22 2006 // The hurricane insurance package passed by the Florida Legislature just before adjournment May 5 is the most significant property insurance bill since major legislation following Hurricane Andrew in the early 1990’s,...
Hurricane winds could be felt in professional liability markets
May 22 2006 // The professional liability market may be significantly affected by the increase in frequency and severity of hurricanes, causing greater rating agency scrutiny and changes to evaluation models. “The three recent...
Hurricane winds could be felt in professional liability markets
May 22 2006 // The professional liability market may be significantly affected by the increase in frequency and severity of hurricanes, causing greater rating agency scrutiny and changes to evaluation models. “The three recent...
Coverage issues at core of Hurricane Katrina-related litigation
May 22 2006 // The initial decisions from Hurricane Katrina lawsuits provide some comfort to both insurers and insureds and potential warnings to insurance agents. The amount of property damage caused by Hurricane Katrina in Mississippi...
Editor’s Note: Tax reform, no catastrophe relief
May 22 2006 // The Texas Legislature concluded its recent special session by passing school finance and property tax reform—finally. After two regular sessions and four special sessions, Texas lawmakers were able to set aside their...
A tale of two New Orleans hotels
May 22 2006 // If there’s anything to be learned from last year’s hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma, it’s that the value of relationships before, during and after a claim is immeasurable, according to Mel Bangs,...
Despite catastrophe losses, soft pricing continues in commercial insurance market, buyers report
May 22 2006 // Although property and general liability insurance rates increased in the first quarter of 2006, all indications point to a continuing soft commercial insurance market, according to the Risk and Insurance Management Society...
