Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Time for Barry and Shenise
Sep 22 2008 // Astute observers of recent political history may recall the story of Harry and Louise — the fictional couple created by a health insurance industry lobbying group in 1994. In political television ads at the time, the...
How Agents Prepared and Fared as Gustav Hit Gulf States
Sep 22 2008 // On the morning of Sept. 1, Gustav’s eye made landfall on the Louisiana coast just shy of Category 3 status. Experts estimate Gustav caused about $8 billion to $10 billion in insured damage. On Aug. 29 as Hurricane...
Early Estimates of Ike Damage: $6B to $18B
Sep 22 2008 // The Real Numbers Won’t be Known for Weeks Estimates of insured damage from Hurricane Ike vary widely — from $8 billion to $16 billion, according to several catastrophe risk modeling firms, but Texas Insurance...
Hurricane Ike: We’re All Connected
Sep 22 2008 // When it was all over, six people were dead, expressways remained flooded in every direction, 1,000 people were evacuated, schools closed and Illinois Gov. Rod Blagoevich had declared seven counties in Illinois as emergency...
Texas, Louisiana Enact Emergency Rules for Hurricane Relief
Sep 22 2008 // Insurance regulators in both Texas and Louisiana have enacted emergency rules aimed at providing relief for insurance consumers in the wake of Hurricanes Gustav and Ike. The Louisiana Department of Insurance issued...
Defending Properties Against Natural Catastrophes
Sep 22 2008 // Build Smart With Passive Protection Systems, Safety Institute CEO Says To hear Julie Rochman tell it, she’d like every community in the United States to be resilient in the face of natural disasters. Rochman,...
Defending Properties Against Natural Catastrophes
Sep 22 2008 // Build Smart With Passive Protection Systems, Safety Institute CEO Says To hear Julie Rochman tell it, she’d like every community in the United States to be resilient in the face of natural disasters. Rochman,...
Rhode Island Marks 70th Anniversary of Its Most Destructive Storm
Sep 21 2008 // Downtown Providence was flooded and neighborhoods were destroyed. A group of school children who drowned after their bus was swept off the road were among the hundreds killed. It’s been 70 years since a catastrophic...
Best Puts Lehman Linked Cat Bonds Under Review – Negative
Sep 19 2008 // A.M. Best Co. has placed the debt ratings of “bb” on Series 2008-1, Class A $150 million principal at-risk variable rate notes of Newton Re Limited, “bb+” on Class B Series 2007-1, $250 million...
Hurricane Gustav Disaster Declaration Extended for Louisiana
Sep 19 2008 // Twenty-five Louisiana parishes are now able to get federal aid to rebuild their buildings and facilities damaged by Hurricane Gustav. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has extended its Gustav disaster declaration in...
Storm Surge Not Covered in Texas Windstorm Association Policies
Sep 19 2008 // A Texas consumer group took issue with the state-chartered windstorm insurance association over its refusal to pay coastal residents for storm surge damage in Hurricane Ike. The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association says...
South Carolina Coastal Risk Conference Garners Insurer Support
Sep 18 2008 // The American Insurance Association is participating in this week’s conference “Out of the Storm: Confronting America’s Catastrophic Risk Crisis,” organized by the South Carolina Department of...
Hurricane Ike Tests Texas Windstorm Association’s Ability to Pay Claims
Sep 18 2008 // The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) on Sept. 17 announced that anticipated claims from Hurricane Ike will force it to use the entire $370 million remainder of its Catastrophe Reserve Trust Fund, according to...
Hurricane Ike to Cost Insurers $7B to $12B, RMS Says in Revised Tally
Sep 18 2008 // Risk Management Solutions (RMS), the catastrophe risk modeling firm, has refined its estimate for U.S. onshore and offshore insured losses from Hurricane Ike to $7 to $12 billion from its original estimate of $6 to $16...
Best Comments on Potential Impact of Hurricane Ike on P/C Industry
Sep 17 2008 // A.M. Best’s preliminary assessment of the potential financial impact from Hurricane Ike concludes that, even though its passage was a “sizeable catastrophic event, the overall financial impact to both the...
S&P’s Analysis of Hurricane Season Finds Mounting Losses
Sep 16 2008 // Following Ike’s march through Texas, S&P noted that the preliminary estimates of insured losses “vary from $6 billion to $18 billion. (These figures include onshore and offshore exposure.)” Before...
S&P Notes: ‘Nat Cat Bonds’ Closely Linked To Cedants’ Practices
Sep 16 2008 // “All natural catastrophe (nat-cat) bonds share some common features, but indemnified nat-cat bonds are much more closely related to the practices of the ceding company than non-indemnified structures,” said...
Woman Who Started Wildfire Says It Was Symbolic
Sep 15 2008 // The former U.S. Forest Service employee who started the worst wildfire in Colorado’s recorded history testified she burned the letter blamed for igniting the blaze as a “symbolic gesture” of her failing...
Bermuda Association Explains Reinsurance Risk Spreading Role
Sep 15 2008 // “The global reinsurance market plays an integral role in spreading US hurricane risk around the world,” said a bulletin from the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers (ABIR). “Without it, the...
Houston’s Corporate Giants Idled by Hurricane Ike
Sep 15 2008 // It’s not quite business as usual in Houston Monday after Hurricane Ike knocked out power to millions, shattered skyscraper windows and wiped out water pressure in the nation’s energy hub. In the midst of an oil...
