U.S. 2-Q cat loss nears US$5 billion

U.S. property and casualty insurers will likely incur about US$4.9 billion in catastrophe-related claims for the second quarter of this year, according to the Insurance Services Office (ISO). Insured losses for the first six months of this year – which saw a record number of auto, residential and commercial claims totaling 1.1 million in number – will clock in at around US$6.3 billion compared with 2002’s tally of US$3.4 billion and the US$6.9 billion in claims paid during the first half of 2001.The bulk of this year’s second quarter cat loss arose from a series of thunderstorms and tornadoes that tore through 18 states during the first half of May, the ISO observes. The insured loss from these storms amounted to US$3.1 billion, nearly two thirds of the quarter’s total cost. Texas generated the greatest insured loss for the second quarter at US$1.2 billion, followed by Oklahoma at US$1.1 billion, Tennessee at US$770 million, Missouri at US$455 million and North Carolina producing US$205 million in claims, the ISO says.