SwissRe releases 2019 disaster estimates
Preliminary results indicate that 2019 could cost insurers less than previous years.
New figures out from international reinsurer Swiss Re show that global insured losses actually dropped in 2019 to $56 billion as compared to the 2018 figure of $93 billion, and well below the average of $75 billion for the previous decade.
The company said that total economic losses from both natural and man-made catastrophes were also lower, coming in at $140 billion for 2019 compared to $176 billion in 2018. Losses attributed to natural catastrophes cost an estimated $133 billion with an additional $7 billion credited to man-made disasters. Approximately 11,000 people were reportedly killed or missing following disasters in 2019.
Activity from tropical storms and cyclones picked up in the second half of 2019, with Hurricane Dorian affecting both the Bahamas and North Carolina and causing insured losses totaling $4.5 billion. Two typhoons hit Japan, causing combined damages estimated at $15 billion.
Climate change continues to take a toll by creating more violent storms as well as heatwaves and dry spells. Wildfires devastated areas in Australia, Indonesia, the U.S., Canada, the Amazon region and Siberia. At the other end of the spectrum, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, China, the U.S, Europe, Canada and Australia also experienced severe flooding events. Swiss Re says that secondary perils comprised more than 50% of the global losses from natural catastrophes.
The Swiss Re Institute finds that climate change is leading to more flooding, torrential rains, prolonged droughts, wildfires and other severe events.
“There is more scientific evidence that climate change impacts the frequency and severity of secondary peril events today, warranting more focus for research,” says Martin Bertogg, head of catastrophe perils at the Swiss Re Institute. “For primary perils like typhoons, science is far less conclusive. In addition, macro risk factors like rapidly growing populations and property values in exposed areas contribute to the increase in losses resulting from natural catastrophes globally, making past experience a less definite predictor for future losses.”
The loss numbers could climb higher since not all events contributing to the losses have been fully assessed at this point in time.
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