Hurricane Katrina and Coastal Insurance

Wed, May 27th 2009, 12:52

2005 was a devastating year for hurricanes along the American coast. Hurricane Katrina struck on 29 August, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. This meant significant losses for insurers and property owners alike.


The destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina and the rest of the hurricane season was widespread. The cost of loss to property and livelihood from the hurricane ran to some $144 billion. $49 billion was insured and the rest of the losses were suffered by individuals not covered by insurance.

The trouble with hurricane damage is that it comes in many forms. Many victims of the hurricanes found that the full scale of losses they suffered were not covered by any single insurance policy. People found that their hurricane insurance did not cover them for flood damage as a result of the storms. Many policies cover wind damage but peripherary damages are not deemed to be a direct result of wind damage. Losses due to fire or vandalism would be covered by separate insurance policies.

The cost to the insurance industry of Hurricane Katrina and the 2005 hurricane season ran to $60 billion, more than double the payouts that had been required in the previous year. With the increasing effects of climate change being evident, this upward trend of risk has meant that insurers have re-assessed how they quantify risks undertaken in their insurance products.

In recent years many people living in high storm risk areas have found that their insurers were not prepared to renew existing storm damage insurance policies. Many coastal areas stretching from Texas to New York have been affected by the exclusion of high risk zones and owners of coastal properties are finding it harder and harder to find sufficient insurance cover.

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