Global Disasters Wreaked Havoc In 2017 – Total Economic Losses Top $300 Billion

by | Jan 5, 2018 | Headline News | 22 comments

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    This report was originally published by Tyler Durden at Zero Hedge

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    According to a new reinsurance report issued by the Swiss Re Institute, total economic losses from natural and man-made disasters have soared 63 percent in 2017 to an estimated $306 billion, up from $188 billion in 2016.

    Globally, insurers lost $136 billion from natural and man-made disasters in 2017, up from $65 billion in 2016, the third highest on record. This is “well above the previous 10-year annual average, and the third highest on sigma records,” Swiss Re said in its report. Natural disasters accounted for $131 billion of 2017’s insured losses, and man-made disasters for the remaining $5 billion. The human loss totaled around 11,000 deaths, similar to 2016.

    Martin Bertogg, Head of Catastrophe Perils at Swiss Re said, “in recent years, annual insurance losses from disaster events have exceeded USD 100 billion a few times. The insurance industry has demonstrated that it can cope very well with such high losses.”

    “However, significant protection gaps remain and if the industry is able to extend its reach, many more people and businesses can become better equipped to withstand the fallout from disaster events,” he added.

    According to Swiss Re, “extreme weather in the US in the second half of 2017” has been the primary driver for high insured losses:

    In August and September, three category 4+ hurricanes – Harvey, Irma, and Maria (HIM) – made landfall in the US. Destruction from the three hurricanes stretched from the Texas coast (Harvey) through West Florida to the Caribbean (Irma and Maria), together causing insured losses estimated to be almost USD 93 billion.

    Given the vast geographic footprint of the hurricanes, which affected multiple locations in quick succession and impacted multiple lines of business, a full assessment of the insured losses is still ongoing.

    The economic losses from the three events will be much higher given the significant flood damage – often uninsured – from hurricane Harvey in densely populated Houston, Texas, an extended power outage in Puerto Rico after hurricane Maria, and post-event loss amplification.

    The United States was the hardest hit according to the report, which indicated hurricanes: Harvey, Irma, and Maria made 2017 the “second costliest hurricane season on sigma records after 2005.”

    Wildfires and thunderstorms in the US were also mentioned in the report:

    Also in the second half of 2017, hot and dry weather in California created favourable conditions for wildfires to ignite and spread to urban areas. There were three major fire events in October in Northern California: Tubbs, Atlas and Mendocino Lake. Both residential and commercial property (including vineyards) were impacted. According to preliminary estimates from Property Claims Services, the major fire events triggered combined insured property losses of USD 7.3 billion. Fires are still raging in Southern California in December, and the as-yet undetermined full-year losses from wildfires will likely be higher.

    Other extreme weather in the US led to a high number of severe convective storms (thunderstorms). Five separate severe thunderstorm events from February to June caused insured losses of more than USD 1 billion each. The most intense and costly event was a four-day long storm in May with heavy damage to property inflicted by hail in Colorado and strong winds in other parts of southern and central states. The economic losses of this storm alone were USD 2.8 billion, with insured losses of USD 2.5 billion.

    Elsewhere, Swiss Re discussed extreme weather events of various forms around the world:

    In mid-September, two powerful earthquakes in Tehuantepec and Puebla, Mexico, led to numerous building collapses, claiming a large number of victims and resulting in insured losses of more than USD 2 billion. Earlier in the year, in late March, the category 4 tropical Cyclone Debbie hit the northeastern coast of Australia. Wind gusts of up to 263 km/h and widespread flooding in central and southeast Queensland and northeast New South Wales led to insured losses of USD 1.3 billion.

    And at the end of April, Europe suffered a cold snap, followed by a summer of heat waves and record temperatures in several locations, making 2017 a year of weather extremes. Further, severe floods in South East Asia caused large devastation and, sadly, a large number or victims.

    Worldwide losses (USD bln) for man-made and natural catastrophes have absolutely exploded since 1990, according to a Swiss Re.

    While natural and man-made disasters wreaked havoc globally and in the United States for the 2017 time period. Will the S&P Insurers index break the neckline?

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      22 Comments

      1. So get ready for even higher insurance premiums we have to pay…

        • Most of the 2017 storm season was flood losses, except for Puerto Rico.

          Flood damage is paid for by FEMA and the National Flood Insurance Program.

          NFIP is a tax payer subsidized flood insurance.

          So if State Farm or Farmers says it has to raise your rates because of the 2017 storms, then it is a lie.

          • Okay, so wait for taxes to go up.

            • 300 billion is chump change compared to what our government wastes per year or spends on things we know nothing about, or just steals.

      2. When I received the policy from Liberty Mutual, the premium was increased $210. The premium started at $850 in 2012, to $1566…..yep–an average increase of $140 each year.
        I moved to Progressive with more coverage and premium of $850. Did lower personal to $91K from $175K.
        Even with an increase on autos policy of approx. $100–I saved.
        NOw, think what I’d be paying in 5 more years if I stayed with liberty–I have no claims ever in 45 years.

        • Progressive is a perfect name. It gets progressively more every 6 months forever. Those douche bags started me off cheap and raised my rates every 6 months with no tickets or claims or anything. I finally told them to get lost and went with AAA and they asked me why I stopped, because of rates? And I said YES goodbye.

      3. All insurance premiums for whatever reason continually rise without fail, that’s the problem. Can you say predatory capitalism? Not one bit of sympathy for those thieves.

        • aljamo, exactly. When there’s a big disaster they often don’t have to pay.
          Notice how many ads on tv for insurance companies?
          They roll in the money.

        • It’s called exponential growth (of insurance premiums) on a finite planet (of insurers).

      4. Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

        Isn’t that is why we Prepp.

        Sgt.

        P.S. Mother Nature can be a “B” if she wants

      5. If WW3 happens, all bets are off. Insurance will become nothing but a memory.

        • Insurance, mortgages, taxes,,,,,
          All will be of no consequence, especially since almost everything is electronic,,,
          Fine, bring it on I say

          • Nailbanger, it’s coming. Just a question of when.

      6. $300 billion. Hey, that’s only $30 billion in 1980 money. Drop in the bucket.

        • You know ‘Him’ – I was actually surprised the figure was so low. I still find it hard to believe it was. Here in Florida, the citrus crop alone took one heck of a hit. As did sugar cane and other farm/ranch production. What also isn’t reckoned is what a cold snap does to tourism. Working on the waterfront today – and I know, no pity from anyone – it was cold as all. Wind out of the east this a.m. pushing wind chill into the 20’s as it came across the ICW. No one vacationing out and about – thus, no buying any service or tourista products. Same deal I’m sure up north. Nothing much besides just staying warm going on.

        • Ouch. That hurts (what my money use to be worth).

          • You don’t have money, you have currency…

            • Ouch again (so true).

      7. None of this is Mother Nature. It’s being done on purpose to move people off of the land that TPB want.
        It’s obvious what is really going on. Look up Agenda 21

      8. None of this is Mother Nature. It’s geo-engineered to steal the land from the common people and give it to the powers that be.

        It’s so obvious. Read Agenda 21 and 2030.

        • “Geo-engineered?”

          That is the dumbest thing I have ever heard, and I once heard Hillary Clinton speak.

          • Is that anything like reading those “chemtrails” in the sky?

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