Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Weathering the storm
Sep 19 2005 // Hurricane Katrina could be called an industry nightmare. Some insurers were still reeling from the effects of the Asian tsunamis and last year’s four hurricanes. Yet when Katrina struck in late August, she forced...
HURRICANE KATRINA: The Legal Saga Begins
Sep 19 2005 // The New Orleans tragedy may spawn a wave of litigation related to flood protection and levee failures. Public statements, which may serve as a foundation for massive public safety legal claims, began Sept. 1. Based on the...
Tropical Storm Ophelia Weakens, Sparing New England from Damage
Sep 18 2005 // Predicted heavy rains and fierce winds never materialized and New England escaped the worst of Tropical Storm Ophelia. By Saturday morning, Ophelia pushed past southeastern Massachusetts, the Cape and the Islands, and...
Hurricanes Getting Stronger Even as Worldwide Total Drops
Sep 16 2005 // The number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes worldwide has nearly doubled over the past 35 years, even though the total number of hurricanes has dropped since the 1990s, according to a study by researchers at the Georgia...
AIIA Launches Hurricane Katrina ‘Blog’
Sep 16 2005 // The Alabama Independent Insurance Agents have launched a Hurricane Katrina ‘blog’ on which information can be logged chronologically to provide information, commentary or thoughts about Hurricane...
Hurricane Ophelia Lashes Cape Lookout, N.C.; Serious Flooding, 11-foot Storm Surge Predicted
Sep 15 2005 // Hurricane warnings are up over a 220 mile stretch of North Carolina’s coast, from Surf City, north of Wilmington to the Virginia line as officials fear serious flooding and a possible 11-foot storm surge. Early...
Lloyd’s Estimates Katrina Impact at $2.54 Billion
Sep 15 2005 // Following a review by all of its 44 managing agents, who operate its 62 active syndicates, Lloyd’s issued a bulletin indicating that its preliminary estimate of losses from Hurricane Katrina are approximately 1.4...
Meadowbrook Insurance Group Expects No Big Hits from Hurricane Katrina
Sep 15 2005 // Meadowbrook Insurance Group Inc. on Thursday reported that, although potential claims information is very preliminary, it does not expect its net losses to be significant from Hurricane Katrina. Meadowbrook President and...
Best Takes Various Rating Actions in Wake of Katrina
Sep 15 2005 // Due to the evolving effects of Hurricane Katrina, A.M. Best Co. has been aggregating public and private information in order to assess the financial impact it will have on insurers. A.M. Best expects all rated companies...
AXA RE Estimates Impact of Hurricane Katrina Losses at $200 Million
Sep 15 2005 // AXA RE, the active reinsurer of France’s AXA Group, said the impact from Hurricane Katrina will probably result in total net losses of approximately $200 million before tax. “This estimate is net of reinsurance...
Crawford & Co. Adjusting Claims in Unusual Circumstances Following Hurricane Katrina
Sep 15 2005 // The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, which looks to be the worst natural disaster the United States has ever experienced, has created unusual circumstances that even the most seasoned of Crawford & Company’s...
Industry Opens Hurricane Insurance Information Center
Sep 15 2005 // In the aftermath of the Hurricane Katrina, the U.S. insurance industry has established the Hurricane Insurance Information Center (HIIC) in Jackson, Mississippi. Additional centers will be opened in other Gulf Coast...
XL’s Katrina Net Losses 1.75% of Industry Totals (Around $700 Million)
Sep 14 2005 // Bermuda-based XL Capital Ltd. announced that, based on initial analyses performed by the Company and preliminary estimates received to date, its “net losses (excluding net reinstatement premiums) relating to...
Endurance Estimates Net Katrina Losses Between $375-$450 Million
Sep 14 2005 // Bermuda-based Endurance Specialty Holdings Ltd. said its initial estimates of losses, net of reinsurance, reinstatement premiums, and tax benefits, related to Hurricane Katrina are between $375 and $450 million. The...
Pa. Planners Turn Focus to How to Handle Potential Katrina-like Crisis
Sep 14 2005 // The size and complexity of the Hurricane Katrina disaster are forcing Pennsylvania’s emergency planners to confront new questions about how well the state might handle a civil emergency of similar magnitude. Floods...
Hurricane Ophelia Packs 85 mph Winds, Pounds the Coast 40 Miles East of Wilmington, N.C.
Sep 14 2005 // Hurricane Ophelia, a Category One hurricane packing 85 mph sustained winds, is raking the North Carolina coast with strong winds and blowing rain. The center of Ophelia is 40 miles east of Wilmington, N.C. and about 50...
Congress Eyes Tax Changes to Aid Hurricane Victims
Sep 14 2005 // Lawmakers in the nation’s capital have proposed tax changes to encourage charitable giving and help victims of Hurricane Katrina get back on their feet. The Senate’s top tax writers offered a package of tax aid...
Republic Reports on Losses from Hurricane Katrina
Sep 14 2005 // Republic Companies Group Inc., headquartered in Dallas, released information regarding its response to Hurricane Katrina and the financial effects of this Category 4 hurricane on the third quarter results of Republic. In...
Fitch Moves 5 Insurers to Rating Watch Negative Following Katrina
Sep 13 2005 // Fitch Ratings has placed the ratings of five North American property/casualty insurance and reinsurance organizations on Rating Watch Negative Tuesday based on potential large loss exposures to Hurricane Katrina. The...
IIAH to Help With Agency Buddy System for Agents Displaced by Hurricane
Sep 12 2005 // The Independent Insurance Agents of Houston announced that IIAH has been contacted by IIABA about the possibility of setting up an “agency buddy system” with the three state associations hit by Hurricane...
