Latest Catastrophe Headlines
All the headlines from our Catastrophe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
News Currents
Feb 25 2007 // Agents welcome windstorm debate; insurers warn against subsidies The Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America (the Big “I”) says the debate over windstorm coverage is crucial for consumers and...
Editor’s Note: (Un)funny money
Feb 25 2007 // Hawaii may have its hurricanes, California has its earthquakes and floods, and Colorado (at least this year) has cumulative snowfalls nearly a mile high. Yet in 2006, the Midwest — not West — won in the...
A look behind the very good property/casualty results for 2006
Feb 25 2007 // News Currents The numbers, or estimates, for the property/ casualty insurance industry for 2006 are in. Dr. Robert Hartwig, president and chief economist of the Insurance Information Institute, sat down with Insurance...
8 Agents welcome windstorm debate
Feb 25 2007 // Insurers warn against subsidies 10 Safeco to cut homeowners, commercial rates 200,000 Calif. customers to benefit, company says 10 Ariz. lawmakers move to raise burden of proof on ER suits Identical bill vetoed by Gov....
More Catastrophe-Related Laws Enacted in 2006, Survey Shows
Feb 23 2007 // Enacted catastrophe-related laws increased dramatically in the states last year, according to the annual survey of state insurance laws prepared by the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (NAMIC). “Ten...
Burns & Wilcox Offers Fire, Earthquake, DIC in Hawaii
Feb 23 2007 // Burns & Wilcox announced it now will provide personal lines fire, earthquake and DIC coverage in Hawaii. Coverage includes owners of primary, secondary, tenant-occupied and seasonally rented homes on the Hawaiian...
RenRe to Develop ‘WOW’ Hurricane Study Model
Feb 23 2007 // RenaissanceRe announced that it will participate in a project, conducted by Florida International University’s (FIU) International Hurricane Research Center (IHRC) and WeatherPredict Consulting, Inc., a U.S....
Multi-State Natural Disaster Insurance Plan Gets Cool Reception
Feb 22 2007 // Insurance officials in Florida, where a spate of hurricanes have set the industry into turmoil, pitched the idea recently of multistate insurance pools for natural disasters to their colleagues from across the...
Powerful Quake Hits Northeast Indonesia
Feb 21 2007 // A powerful earthquake in northeastern Indonesia on Tuesday caused panicked residents to flee shaking buildings on islands in the Maluku Sea and briefly triggered a tsunami warning, officials said. The 6.5-magnitude temblor...
Lawyer: La. Citizens Nearing Mass Settlement of Hurricane Suits
Feb 21 2007 // Louisiana’s state-run insurer is nearing a mass settlement with policyholders that would be the first deal of its kind in the state since hurricanes Katrina and Rita spawned thousands of lawsuits, an attorney for the...
Chicago Exchange, Carvill Ready Hurricane Futures for Insurers
Feb 20 2007 // The Chicago Mercantile Exchange, the largest derivatives exchange in the United States, announced last week that it is launching contracts that will allow insurers and others to hedge risk against hurricane damage. The...
Geeslin’s First Months as Texas Commissioner Were ‘Trial by Fire’
Feb 20 2007 // It could be said the first year of Mike Geeslin’s term as Texas Insurance Commissioner was one of “trial by fire.” Gov. Rick Perry appointed Geeslin to the post in June 2005, just months before Hurricanes...
Maryland Mulls Ways to Keep Insurers from Abandoning Coastal Properties
Feb 15 2007 // Alarmed that homeowners on Maryland’s coasts may one day be cut off from home insurance, state lawmakers are mulling new rules prohibiting insurers from pulling out of areas they deem risky. But insurers met with...
La.’s Blanco: Insurance Industry Over-Reacting to 2005 Hurricanes
Feb 15 2007 // The insurance industry is over-reacting to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, threatening the region’s recovery by withdrawing coverage and charging exorbitant rates, Gov. Kathleen Blanco told a gathering of insurance...
Earthquake Rattles Midwest City, Okla.
Feb 14 2007 // A small earthquake rattled the Midwest City, Okla., area Feb. 12, but no damage or injuries were reported, officials said. The magnitude 3.0 earthquake occurred at 12:33 p.m., 31/2 miles west of Midwest City, according to...
Close to New Madrid Fault, Memphis Undertakes Earthquake Planning
Feb 13 2007 // Shelby County, Tennessee emergency planners must identify “pinch points” that are most vulnerable to earthquake damage, Mayor A C Wharton says. “The best safety tool we have is to be aware of what we can...
Study shows Texas economy vulnerable to Cat 3-sized coastal storm
Feb 12 2007 // A study commissioned by the Independent Insurance Agents of Texas (IIAT) shows that the economy of the entire state of Texas would be severely impacted if a Category 3-type hurricane were to hit heavily populated areas of...
The Commissioners: Mike Geeslin
Feb 12 2007 // Geeslin has faced hurricanes, liquidations, workers’ comp overhaul And that was just in the first year of the commissioner’s term It could be said the first year of Mike Geeslin’s term as Texas Insurance...
Commercial clients ‘swallow a bitter pill’ when it comes to cat coverage
Feb 12 2007 // When it comes to property catastrophe insurance coverage, many commercial clients are being forced to swallow a bitter pill in the form of steep prices, new limits on policies, higher deductibles and a shortage in the...
Fla. pols to lobby Washington for national catastrophe fund
Feb 12 2007 // After the Florida Legislature passed a bill that lawmakers say will address the state’s insurance problems, Gov. Charlie Crist and legislative leaders said their attention will be on pushing for a national...
