Insured Losses for 2 Recent European Windstorms Estimated at €3B-€5B: Verisk

Insured losses due to wind from Winter Storms Dudley/Ylenia and Eunice/Zeynep will range between €3 billion and €5 billion (US$2.2 billion-$5.6 billion), the majority of which are expected in Germany, UK, and the Netherlands, according to Verisk Extreme Event Solutions (formerly AIR Worldwide).

These estimates reflect wind damage from Dudley/Ylenia and Eunice/Zeynep to residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural properties as well as automobiles. (Storm Dudley and Eunice were the names given to the storms in the UK, while Ylenia and Zeynep were the storms’ names in Germany).

The industry loss estimates also reflect an adjustment to account for increased material and other repair costs in the current construction market. Based on Verisk’s analysis of the current market conditions in the UK and continental Europe, Verisk estimates losses could be 10–15% or more above the modeled results. This adjustment accounts for the increased cost of construction during 2021.

“After Storm Dudley/Ylenia menaced parts of the UK and Northern Europe Feb. 16 and 17 with high winds, an even stronger Storm Eunice/Zeynep swept in to cause damage in the region Feb. 18 to 20,” said Dr. Marc Marcella, principal scientist at Verisk.

“In the wake of Dudley/Ylenia, Storm Eunice/Zeynep brought more high winds, leading to widespread reports of wind damage to homes and businesses in the UK and continental Europe, including roofs torn off,” Marcella continued. “In addition, the roofs of an arena in London and another in the Hague were damaged severely. Extreme wind speeds in London are relatively rare. Transportation of all types, including hundreds of domestic and international flights and rail, and road travel, was disrupted in the UK and continental Europe.”

Damage due to coastal flooding was relatively insignificant for this event, although high water levels and storm surge inundation were experienced in several locations, in particular along the German North Sea coastline, and near river mouths, where surge levels approached 3 meters, said Verisk.

Although Storm Franklin/Antonia followed close behind, its effects were not as impactful as Eunice’s.

According to Verisk, the rapid succession of two or more low pressure systems within a short time frame is not an unusual event in Europe. While the clustering events Daria, Vivian, Wiebke (1990) and Anatol, Lothar and Martin (1999), more than two decades ago, are still the most prominent examples for clustering of extratropical cyclones in Europe, there have been some more recent clustering events that have affected Europe.

For example, the storm clusters Elon and Felix or Mike and Niklas in 2015 and Draghi and Eberhard in 2019 occurred within less than 72 hours and caused significant insured losses across Europe, the Boston-based modeling firm said.

Verisk said its modeled insured loss estimates include:

• Insured physical damage from wind to property (residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural and auto), including structures and their contents, as well as business interruption and additional living expenses (for the UK only)

Verisk’s modeled insured loss estimates do not include:

• Losses due to coastal or inland flooding
• Additional living expenses (ALE) for residential claims for all modeled countries, except the UK
• Losses to uninsured properties
• Losses to infrastructure
• Demand surge (Verisk’s demand surge function is not triggered by this event)
• Losses caused by Storm Franklin/Antonia

Photograph: Sven Good, 23, looks out from his bedroom window at the damage caused to the family home a day after a 400-year-old oak tree in the garden was uprooted by Storm Eunice, in Stondon Massey, near Brentwood, Essex, England, on Saturday Feb. 19, 2022. Crews cleared fallen trees and worked to restore power to about 400,000 people in Britain as Western Europe cleaned up after one of the most damaging storms in years. At least 12 people were killed, many by falling trees, in Ireland, Britain, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany. Named Storm Eunice by the British and Irish weather services, and Storm Zeynep in Germany, Eunice was the second to hit the region in a week. Photo credit: Nicholas.T.Ansell/PA via AP.

Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Profit Loss Windstorm Europe Agribusiness Germany