Eqecat: Chile - $15-30B in damage

[omagh]

This is a large catastrophe.  Has anyone seen other estimates?  What exposures are being projected for major insurers/re-insurers?

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8542122.stm

One US risk assessor, Eqecat, put the value of the damage at between $15bn and $30bn (£9.8bn-£19.6bn) or 10-20% of gross domestic product.

[Rabbitisrich]

Eqecat seems to be the only widely disseminated forecast so far. Here's the link to their news release:

 

http://www.eqecat.com/catWatchREV/secureSite/report.cfm?id=220

 

 

Fortunately, the death tolls don't seem to be heading into a Haiti or Indian Ocean type event.

[Viking]

The economic damage is severe. It will be interesting to see what the cost to insurers is and who has exposure.

[Hoodlum]

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100301-717756.html?mod=WSJ_World_MIDDLEHeadlinesEurope

 

"Catastrophe risk modeling firm, Eqecat Inc., estimated that insured losses from the 8.8 magnitude earthquake that hit Chile Saturday could range from $3 billion to $8 billion, or 25% of the total economic losses. The company said the loss represents 15-40% of the estimated insured limits for earthquake coverage. The firm noted that the estimate range is so wide because it was not formed by on-the-ground data and the extent of Chile's infrastructure damage is still unclear."

 

"Sometimes losses can lead insurers to increase prices for insurance. But "We do not foresee this as a potential pricing catalyst for the [reinsurance] industry," wrote Macquarie analyst Bill Yankus in a research note."

 

"About 90% of homeowners in Chile have property policies that cover earthquakes, Hartwig said, citing information from Axco, an independent supplier of global insurance market information. By contrast, roughly 12% of homeowners in California, a U.S. state vulnerable to earthquakes, have such coverage."

 

[Christopher1]

More details about the insurance industry exposures, and the main players in the Chilean property insurance market:

 

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aDjXMKh8EbFE&pos=7

[StubbleJumper]

Insurable losses of $2-8 billion gives a mid-point of about $5 billion.  That would be roughly like Hurricane Charley?

 

Charley was only one of the four horsemen of 2004.  It'll take a lot more than Chile to make a dent in the industry CRs.

 

SJ

[Hoodlum]

Fairfax had estimated losses from Hurricane Charley at $40M.  Not sure how this will translate to the Chilean Earthquake.