Latest Catastrophe Headlines

All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Insurance Regulators Hosting National Catastrophe Insurance Program Summit

Nov 14 2005 // State insurance regulators, industry representatives, catastrophe experts and consumer representatives are convening in San Francisco on Tuesday for a two-day summit in to help devise a national catastrophe insurance...

AIG Sees Q3 Net of $1.72 Billion

Nov 14 2005 // American International Group Inc. (AIG) has filed its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended Sept. 30, 2005 with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Third quarter 2005 net income was $1.72 billion or $0.65...

Iowa Tornadoes Leave 1 Dead; Dozens of Homes Damaged

Nov 13 2005 // Nearly one week after killer tornadoes left more than 20 dead in Indiana, weekend tornadoes in Iowa killed at least one woman on Saturday and forced the evacuation of people from a college football game. The twisters hit...

House Committee to Offer 2-Year Terrorism Insurance Extension Next Week

Nov 11 2005 // The House Financial Service Committee has come up with what at least one group is calling a “workable” proposal to renew the federal terrorism insurance act for two years. The bill will be marked up by the...

PXRE Acquires $300 Million Cat Bond Backup Reinsurance

Nov 10 2005 // It may be a case of locking the barn door after the horse has gone (see following article), but Bermuda-based PXRE has taken a significant step to protect itself “from extreme catastrophe losses arising from...

Hannover Re Posts 9 Month Losses over $1 Billion

Nov 10 2005 // Germany’s Hannover Re, the world’s third largest reinsurer, has been hit with a commensurately large share of the losses from Katrina, Rita et. al. The company’s 9 month report notes an “exceptional...

Emergency Management Director Addresses Florida’s Hurricane Response Weaknesses

Nov 10 2005 // The failures that left thousands of Florida residents unprepared for Hurricane Wilma should be addressed by launching a new election-style marketing campaign, expanding the tax-free shopping week and beefing up...

Alabama DOI Predicts Price Increases; Expects 50,000 Hurricane Claims

Nov 10 2005 // More than 50,000 claims are expected in Alabama from hurricane damage according to Ragan Ingram, assistant insurance commissioner for the Alabama Department of Insurance. He said, however, that complete cost estimates...

Safeco Sees After-Tax Losses from Wilma at $29 Million

Nov 10 2005 // Seattle-based Safeco announced estimated after-tax catastrophe losses from Hurricane Wilma of $29 million, or $0.23 per diluted share. Pretax catastrophe losses from the storm are estimated at $45 million. These figures...

La. DOI: Emergency Rules to Expire on Nov. 30 and Dec. 31

Nov 9 2005 // Louisiana Department of Insurance issued a second notice regarding the Emergency Rules that require insurance companies to give policyholders affected by Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita an automatic extension of time...

Ind. Tornado Losses Top $10 Million

Nov 9 2005 // Preliminary estimates for insured losses arising from the surprise tornado that struck southern Indiana on Sunday stands at $10 million, according to the Insurance Institute of Indiana. Twenty-two people died and about 230...

Fla. CFO Gallagher Supports Tax-Deferred CAT Fund Reserves; Suggests Reinsurance Rate Study

Nov 8 2005 // Legislation in Congress to pass U.S. Rep. Mark Foley’s proposal to allow the accumulation of tax-deferred catastrophic reserves by insurers, and a study on how to add programs to the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe...

Katrina, Rita Hit James River in Q3

Nov 8 2005 // James River Group Inc. in Chapel Hill, N.C. reported a net loss of $9.5 million for the third quarter of 2005 compared to net income of $3.0 million for the third quarter of 2004. The net loss for the third quarter of 2005...

Medical Examiner Attributes 25 Percent of Hurricane Deaths to Cleanup Efforts

Nov 8 2005 // Cleanup activities after hurricanes in 2004 and 2005 resulted in 25 percent of the 201 deaths registered according to Dr. Stephen Nelson, chairman of the Florida Medical Examiners Commission. Accidents from cleaning up,...

ISO’s Coyne Urges P/C Insurers to Reinvent Themselves to Survive Fierce Competition, Catastrophes

Nov 8 2005 // Fierce competition and catastrophe losses are forcing change all across the property/casualty insurance business, an industry leader said Monday. Ferocious competition has driven rates of return down and led to an increase...

CPCU Society Annual Meeting Attendees Gain Insight at Hurricane Katrina Seminar

Nov 8 2005 // More than 130 chartered property casualty underwriters and their guests at the recent CPCU Society Annual Meeting and Seminars attended an exclusive seminar, “Hurricane Katrina: Lessons Learned.” The...

Ind. Gov. Declares Post-Tornado State of Emergency

Nov 8 2005 // Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels declared a statewide emergency on Monday and asked President George W. Bush for federal assistance for Hoosiers devastated by a tornado and severe storms that affected parts of Indiana during...

Disaster Claims and the Ripple Effect

Nov 7 2005 // Hurricane Katrina has long gone, but the aftereffects of the mighty storm are likely to linger for a very long time. Rita and Wilma have compounded the mess. The direct losses are staggering. The latest preliminary figures...

International Newsbriefs

Nov 7 2005 // Asian Quake Death Toll Over 50,000: The 7.6 magnitude earthquake that struck near Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-administered Kashmir on Oct. 8 killed over 50,000 people in the country. Another 1,400 died on the Indian side of...

National Newsbriefs

Nov 7 2005 // P/C Insurers Post Record Results in 2005: The U.S. property/casualty industry recorded an underwriting profit of $13.2 billion, with a net income of $32.1 billion during the first six months of 2005, a substantial gain...