InsuranceEDGE | January 13, 2022 | BuildingMetrix

Roughly $120 billion of the $280 billion of losses caused by natural disasters in 2021 were insured. Last year tied 2005 and 2011 as the second-costliest ever for the insurance industry.

The trailing impacts of premium and loss trends on the books of property/casualty reinsurers makes the 2022 outlook for reinsurers rosier than the profit outlook for primary insurers.

Global mergers and acquisitions activity attained historic highs in 2021 with 1047 deals valued at more than $100 million, a significant increase from 2020.

Insured losses of $44 billion from COVID-19 so far represent the third-largest cost to insurers of any catastrophe, behind Hurricane Katrina and 9/11.

Most general and excess liability insurance buyers paid more for their coverage at year-end renewals, but the rate of increases was lower than the sharp pricing spikes.

Reinsurance renewal rates fluctuated widely at Jan.1 renewals, with catastrophe losses and a constrained retrocessional reinsurance market driving property rates higher.

Forecasting how storms may change in the future, it helps to know something about their past. Judging from historical records dating back to the 1850s, hurricanes in the North Atlantic have become more frequent over the last 150 years. 

More than 100 insurance companies are suing the Texas power grid operator and several power-generating companies (PGCs) over losses suffered in the 2021 storm.

Investigators looking for the cause of the Colorado wildfire that destroyed nearly 1,000 homes have narrowed their search to a neighborhood outside Boulder. 

With nearly 1,000 structures destroyed, catastrophe modeling firm KCC estimates the insured loss from the recent Colorado wildfire could be $1 billion.