NEW YORK – Hurricane Katrina is likely to result in at least $34.4 billion in personal and commercial property loss claims, according to the first publicly released survey of the nation’s insurers.
ISO’s Property Claim Services Unit said Tuesday that the preliminary estimate of damages to homes and businesses in six states would make Katrina the most costly natural disaster in U.S. history, surpassing the inflation-adjusted $20.8 billion in losses from Hurricane Andrew in 1992.
The tally includes anticipated insurance industry losses for personal and commercial property, including boats and vehicles, and business interruption coverage. Reported damaged to insured onshore oil facilities is included, ISO officials said.
The estimates exclude losses to utilities, agriculture, aircraft, offshore drilling platforms and property insured under the federal flood insurance program.
ISO, an insurance risk and data firm based in Jersey City, N.J., said policyholders in the six affected states – Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee – were expected to file more than 1.6 million claims for damage to personal and commercial property, automobiles, boats and yachts.
Also Tuesday, the Securities and Exchange Commission said it was easing rules for insurance companies to raise capital, responding to concern that the billions of dollars in losses from the hurricanes could make it harder for the insurers to pay claims.
And the Justice Department on Tuesday temporarily waived a provision of a tough new bankruptcy law, the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, to aid people filing for bankruptcy in Louisiana and southern Mississippi because of Hurricane Katrina.
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