The first half will remain marked by the floods in Germany and the Czech Republic last June. The spectacular flooding of the Elbe cost insurers 4 billion dollars, according to initial estimates by Swiss Re, much more than the same event that occurred 11 years earlier in the region (2,9 billion).
These figures make the Central European flood the second most expensive climate event of its kind for the industry, after the Thailand floods in 2011 (more than $15 billion). Globally, catastrophes of this type led to $8 billion in first-half claims, including those in June in Alberta, Canada ($2 billion) and in Australia in January, with the transition of Cyclone Oswald (1 billion).
“We cannot avoid future disasters, but preventive actions need to be thought of that minimize the global impact of extreme weather events,” said Jens Mehlhorn, Head of Flood Risks at Swiss Re.
Although on a smaller scale, there are other natural disasters that occurred in the first half. Several tornadoes have swept across the United States. The one that hit the city of Moore, Oklahoma, killed 28 people and caused $1,8 billion in damage. In total, the disasters caused, again in the first six months of the year, 7 deaths, damages for 56 billion and compensations for 20 billion.
It got worse in 2012. In the US, storms and hurricanes cost $67 billion during the first six months. The insurance companies have issued compensation for 21 billion. Not counting the second half, in which hurricane Sandy alone caused damages of 35 billion.
