Insurers Were Hit by $89 Billion of Disaster Losses Last Year
Floodwater around homes after Hurricane Delta made landfall in Delcambre, Louisiana, on Oct. 10.
Photographer: Bryan Tarnowski/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Insurers were hit by $89 billion of losses from disasters in 2020, the fifth-costliest year for the industry in data going back five decades, according to a new report from Swiss Re.
The reinsurer said the bulk of those costs, which were higher than the previous 10-year annual average of $79 billion, were from natural catastrophes, including hurricanes Laura and Sally and a derecho storm in the U.S. Total economic losses from natural and man-made catastrophes reached $202 billion, up from $150 billion in 2019.