5 and Florida with 570 million of damage 1

This will soon be a year that Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, but insurers start to refine the balance sheet of the disaster. The Insurance Information Institute (III), an organization that refers us, thus has just published a new battery of only informative as accurate data. According to this Institute, Katrina caused the death of 1.323 people. Is 8,000 died as a severe cyclone was trained in 1900 in the small city of Galveston, Texas, but this is still the fourth deadliest hurricane in the United States.

Eight States affected

It is on the economic plan that Katrina beats all records. Its passage resulted in 1.7 million of losses which have cost insurers $ 40.6 billion. It should be added to this 15.3 billion supported by a public fund, the National Flood Insurance Program, to cover part of the flood (sinister 211.000) consecutive to the storm, and 2 to 3 billion dollars for damage to oil platforms. Total disaster therefore generated almost 60 billion insured, a record for a single event.

Eight States have crossed by the cyclone in more of a 650 kilometre radius, including 190 with cyclonic force winds: Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, the Georgia, Kentucky and Ohio in the order of passage. It is of course Louisiana, where New Orleans, which has paid the heaviest price. She suffered damage covered by private insurers $ 25.3 billion, or 62 of the total, with 975.000 sinister. It must be added the large majority of the claims supported by the Fund for compensation of floods. Mississippi comes after, with 13.6 billion in insured damage (33.5) to sinister 515.000, followed by Alabama with 1 billion damage claims 109.000 (2.5), and Florida, with 570 million of damage (1.4) for 150.000 sinister. Other States have been less affected.

By insurance industry, the risks of firms and individuals were affected in the same proportions. The companies represent 20.8 billion in insured losses, two-thirds for property damage, a third for operating losses. Individuals represent 19.8 billion of insured losses, with insurance-housing for 88 of this amount (275.000 dwellings have been destroyed) and automobile insurance for a little more than 10, the balance being made up of the insurance of ships from pleasure. The Insurance Information Institute said that to date more than 90 of the victims were compensated.

The most expensive Hurricane

108 insurance and reinsurance companies said be affected by the disaster, the British Lloyds (5 billion dependants) being more heavily, monitoring of the Americans, Berkshire (3.5 billion) and Allstate (2.9 billion). Insurers and reinsurers have fairly shared losses, capital markets was assuming only a small part via the induction of a single bond catastrophe ("cat bond").

Ultimately, Katrina remain so well in history as the event having cost the most expensive world insurance, far before the 21.6 billion of Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and even the $ 34 billion of "September 11, 2001. But the worst is never certain. According to the III, a cyclone of similar to the one that struck Miami in 1926 could cause in the 2020s if demographic trends and the buildings along the coast continues, some 500 billion dollars of damage insured...