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Insured losses from central Europe floods pass $5 billion


July 10, 2013   by Canadian Underwriter


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Insured losses from the major flooding in central Europe could be about US$5.3 billion, according to the latest monthly global catastrophe recap report from Impact Forecasting.

 Allianz surveys the floods in central EuropeEconomic losses from those events are estimated at US$22 billion, according to the report from June 2013, produced by the catastrophe model development centre of Aon Benfield.

Most of the losses were in Germany, although the floods affected the  Czech Republic, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, and Switzerland after major rivers burst their banks, including the Danube, Vltava, Rhine, Main, and Neckar, the company noted.

The severe flooding in southern Alberta at the end of June also caused major damage, with total economic damages estimated at C$4 billion and preliminary insured loss estimates at around C$1.1 billion.

Total economic losses in northern India and Nepal, which also experienced major flooding after monsoon rains, is estimated at about US$1.1 billion so far, with insured losses expected to reach about US$500 million.

“Flooding is becoming an increasingly expensive and devastating peril globally, and we continue to work with our clients to help them understand and manage their exposures,” noted Steve Jakubowski, president of Impact Forecasting.

“We have now developed flood models for six European countries with significant flood risk, and also for the U.S. and Thailand, which are helping insurers and reinsurers to manage their aggregated exposures in these regions,” he added.

June was also marked by severe weather in the United States, where at least two derecho events caused damaging winds in several states. Severe thunderstorms there caused about US$1 billion in damage and insured losses of about US$500 million.

Other severe events during the month included severe thunderstorms and tornadoes, as well as flash flooding across parts of France, Spain and Switzerland.

In France, severe damage was recorded in several areas with economic losses estimated at US$655 million. In Switzerland, insured losses from severe weather in an area from Geneva to Laussane and the Jura to Neuchatel was estimated at $214 million, Impact Forecasting reported.

The full recap report for June is available on Impact Forecasting’s website.

Photo: “Several villages remain under water, but the situation is under control,” Allianz says. (Photo by Vaclav Balek, Allianz Czech Republic)


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