Increased damage from natural disasters

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This is evident from the Sigma report published on Wednesday by reinsurer Swiss Re. At $125 billion, about half of the damage caused by natural disasters was covered by insurance. This confirms the trend that insured claims are increasing by an average of 5 to 7 percent annually, Swiss Re explains in a statement.

Inflation in 2022 averaged 7 percent in industrialized countries and 9 percent in emerging countries. Rising prices have made buildings, vehicles and other insurable assets more expensive, increasing insured losses from natural disasters, according to Swiss Re.

The reinsurer sees the increasing concentration of tangible assets in areas at risk of natural disasters as another factor driving the damage. “It is therefore important for our industry to map current danger zones even more carefully in risk assessments, while at the same time helping society to be better equipped against natural hazards,” Swiss Re’s Martin Bertogg said in a statement.

Last year Hurricane Ian was by far the costliest event. It hit Florida in September and caused $50 billion to $65 billion in insured losses.

Early last year, a series of storms in northwestern Europe caused more than $4 billion in insured losses. At $5 billion, France recorded its highest-ever hail damage in a year.

According to the reinsurer, flood losses were above average worldwide. Flooding in Eastern Australia in the spring of 2022 caused insured losses of $4.3 billion, Australia’s costliest natural disaster to date.

At the same time, crop yields in Brazil, especially soybeans and maize, suffered from severe drought and record heat waves. According to Swiss Re, insured losses of one billion dollars were incurred here. (SDA)

Source: Blick