Early insured loss estimates from the US Artic Freeze
The early estimate on insured losses flowing from the recent Artic freeze in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Oklahoma have come in at a staggering US$18 billion.1
As has been reported on the news, the hardest hit was Texas, where 4.5 million lost power, 8.8 million lost water or were warned to boil their water, and 35 people perished.
As so often happens, reports are coming in that many people were under insured or not insured, which would push the actual cost of the storm and the lack of preparedness to deal with such conditions, again most notably in Texas, much higher.
I do not want to get into a debate about the causes of climate change, but the fact is that the incidence and severity of severe weather conditions is certainly on the rise, and we need to factor this into government, organisation and individual risk management planning.
Losses of this magnitude will certainly not help those hoping for a reduction in property rates in the near future.
- Source: Karen Clark & Company