Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Insurance Agents, Travelers, Nationwide Urge Coastal Wind Policy
Aug 4 2008 // Travelers, Nationwide Mutual and two leading national insurance producer organizations are supporting a plan they say will make private windstorm insurance more affordable and available in coastal areas. Federal...
Wildfires Rekindle Need for Private Fire Protection Efforts
Aug 4 2008 // As wildfires seemingly increase in frequency and severity of insured losses year after year, insurers are devising fire prevention methods to protect their client’s properties — including hiring private...
U.S. P/C Insurers’ Catastrophe Losses for Q2 Double to $6 Billion
Aug 4 2008 // Total of 16 Cats Generate More Than 1.2 Million Claims; Average Claim Nearly $5,000 U.S. property/casualty insurers are expected to pay homeowners and businesses an estimated $6.025 billion for second quarter property...
Tennessee Utility, College Get Federal Relief for Tornado Damage
Jul 30 2008 // The federal government approved $5.7 million in disaster assistance funding for two Tennessee institutions that suffered tornado damage, Gov. Phil Bredesen said. These grants are part of the federal Public Assistance...
State’s Building Code Helps Minimize Losses from California Earthquake
Jul 30 2008 // The moderate earthquake that struck Los Angeles late Tuesday (July 29) morning at 11:42am PDT has not caused major damage or serious injury, according to early eyewitness reports and the Los Angeles Fire Department. Based...
Calif. Earthquake Authority Prepared to Handle Claims; Expects Minor Damage
Jul 30 2008 // Only 12 percent of California homeowners currently own earthquake insurance policies, potentially leaving millions of Californians financially unprotected in the event of a catastrophic quake. Of the 12 percent of...
Californians Told to Expect Aftershocks Following Earthquake
Jul 30 2008 // Federal officials said they will continue to monitor and coordinate with California agencies regarding Tuesday’s 5.4 magnitude earthquake that struck just south of downtown Los Angeles. The Federal Emergency...
AIR Estimates Taiwan Typhoon Insured Losses under $100 Million
Jul 30 2008 // Catastrophe risk modeling firm AIR Worldwide has issued a bulletin indicating that insured losses in Taiwan from Typhoon Fung-Wong are unlikely to exceed $100 Million. Dr. Peter Sousounis, senior research scientist at AIR...
Hartford Insurance Results Dip in Q2 Due in Part to Tornado Claims
Jul 29 2008 // Hartford Financial Services Group Inc.’s earnings fell in the second quarter, hurt by claims from tornado damage. Operating earnings fell 9 percent to $696 million. Net income for the second quarter was down 13...
Premiums, Net Income Decline for Safeco in Q2
Jul 29 2008 // Seattle, Wash.-based Safeco’s net income dropped nearly $37 million in the second-quarter 2008 over the same time period in 2007, the company reported today. For the second-quarter 2008, Safeco posted net income of...
Damages from Hurricane Dolly May Reach $750 Million
Jul 28 2008 // Catastrophe risk specialist RMS says the insurance bill for damage from Hurricane Dolly, which hit Southwest Texas on July 23, may go as high as $750 million, while Boston-based AIR Worldwide estimates damages to come in...
New Hampshire Insurance Dept: Track Tornado Tree Damage
Jul 28 2008 // New Hampshire residents facing downed trees on their houses or in their yards from Thursday’s tornado could face some hefty bills. A typical homeowner’s insurance policy in New Hampshire covers only $1,000 for...
Calif. Wildfire Forces Evacuations West of Yosemite National Park
Jul 28 2008 // A fast-spreading fire burning near an entrance to Yosemite National Park near Midpines, Calif., forced the evacuations of 170 homes on Sunday and caused officials to cut power to the park. The fire grew from about 1.5...
Insurance Payments Fall Short of Repair Costs after Tennessee Tornado
Jul 25 2008 // Tennessee officials razed fairgrounds bleachers damaged by a tornado in Clarksville, Tennessee. Parks and Recreation Director Kevin Cowling said the tornado on May 3 moved parts of the concrete bleachers 2 inches. A...
Threat of Flooding Persists After Dolly Downgrades to Tropical Storm
Jul 25 2008 // Hurricane Dolly barreled into South Texas on Wednesday, July 23 lashing the coast with winds up to 100 mph (161 kph) and dumping heavy rain that flooded some low-lying areas but spared levees along the heavily populated...
Coastal Texas Begins Clean-up After Hurricane Dolly
Jul 25 2008 // Residents in south Texas on the coast have begun the tough job of cleaning up at Hurricane Dolly slammed into the coast on Wednesday, July 23. On Thursday power lines were still down, but according to news reports, many...
Chubb Q2 Premiums Flat; Cat Losses Adversely Impact Financial Results
Jul 25 2008 // Catastrophe losses in the second quarter adversely impacted financial results for The Chubb Corp., which reported net income in the second quarter of 2008 fell $213 million over the same time period in 2007, or $469...
Utah Geologists Look for Earthquake Fault Clues
Jul 25 2008 // Utah State University geologists say a close look at a deep trench along the East Cache Fault has uncovered some good news: There’s no evidence of recent earthquakes along that section of the fault. USU geology...
Flooding Feared Along U.S.-Texas Border from Hurricane Dolly
Jul 24 2008 // After Hurricane Dolly unleashed a fury of damaging winds and wicked rain on the U.S.-Mexico coastline and diminished to a tropical storm, widespread flooding along the populous Rio Grande Valley became the top concern...
Travelers Weathers Q2 Catastrophe Losses; Combined Ratio at 89%
Jul 23 2008 // The Travelers Companies, Inc. reported net income of $942 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2008, compared to $1.254 billion for the quarter ended June 30, 2007. Operating income in the current quarter was $918...
