Major insurance and reinsurance industry loss events

Here we document major industry loss events that have affected the insurance and reinsurance market in recent years, with data on the latest insured loss estimates for catastrophe and man-made disasters that we have collated from a range of sources.

Listing the major natural catastrophe and man-made disaster loss events, this directory provides a simple way to analyse the impacts of major events that result in significant claims for the insurance and reinsurance industry.

Our news articles on major catastrophe and man-made losses can be found over on this archive page.

Loss name	Month/year of loss	Industry loss	Economic loss (where available)	Natural or man-made loss?	Notes
Japan Earthquake	Jan-24	$1.8 billion - $6.4 billion		Nat Cat	In 2023 dollars
Hurricane Otis	Oct-23	$4 billion	$12 billion	Nat Cat	In 2023 dollars
Morocco Earthquake	Sep-23	$0.3 billion	$7 billion	Nat Cat	In 2023 dollars
Typhoon Doksuri (Egay)	Jul/Aug-23	$2 billion	$25 billion	Nat Cat	In 2023 dollars
U.S. Tornado series, severe storm	Jun-23	$3.9 billion	$5.6 billion	Nat Cat	In 2023 dollars
Flood, flash flood, severe storm	May-23	$1.1 billion	$10 billion	Nat Cat	In 2023 dollars
U.S. Tornado, winter storm	Mar/Apr-23	$4.3 billion	$5.5 billion	Nat Cat	In 2023 dollars
U.S. Severe Storm	Mar-23	$4.2 billion	$6 billion	Nat Cat	In 2023 dollars
Turkey and Syria earthquakes	Feb-23	$6 billion	$45 billion+	Nat Cat	In 2023 dollars
Cyclone Gabrielle	Jan/Feb-23	$700 million	$8 billion	Nat Cat	In 2023 dollars
Hurricane Ian	Sep-22	$50 billion - $65 billion	$115 billion	Nat Cat	In 2022 dollars
Hurricane Fiona	Sep-22	$590 million	$2.9 billion	Nat Cat	In 2022 dollars
Pakistan floods	Jun/Oct-22	$100 million	$15 billion	Nat Cat	In 2022 dollars
European storms Petra and Qiara	Jun-22	$2.1 billion	$2.6 billion	Nat Cat	In 2022 dollars
Southern China floods	Jun-22	$300 million	$5 billion	Nat Cat	In 2022 dollars
U.S. derecho	May-22	$2.2 billion	$2.7 billion	Nat Cat	In 2022 dollars
Honshu, Japan earthquake	Mar-22	$2.8 billion	$8.5 billion	Nat Cat	In 2022 dollars
European windstorms Dudley (Ylenia) and Eunice (Zeynep)	Feb-22	$4.3 billion	$5.9 billion	Nat Cat	In 2022 dollars
Eastern Australia floods	Feb/Mar-22	$4 billion	$6.8 billion	Nat Cat	In 2022 dollars
Hurricane Ida	Aug-21	$30 billion- $44 billion		Nat Cat	In 2021 dollars
Low pressure system Bernd	Jul-21	~$13 billion	~$54 billion	Nat Cat	In 2021 dollars
South Africa riots	Jul-21	$600 million - $1 billion		Man-made	In 2021 dollars
Henan, China floods	Jun-21	$1.7 billion	$16.5 billion	Nat Cat	In 2021 dollars
Winter storm Uri	Feb-21	$15 billion- $20 billion		Nat Cat	In 2021 dollars
Fukushima, Japan earthquake	Feb-21	$2.63 billion		Nat Cat	In 2021 dollars
Hurricane Zeta	Oct-20	$3 billion - $5 billion		Nat Cat	In 2020 dollars Onshore losses only
Hurricane Delta	Oct-20	$3 billion - $5 billion		Nat Cat	In 2020 dollars Including NFIP losses
Hurricane Sally	Sep-20	$2 billion - $3.5 billion		Nat Cat	In 2020 dollars Including NFIP losses
Hurricane Laura	Aug-20	$9 billion - $13 billion		Nat Cat	In 2020 dollars Onshore losses only
Hurricane Isaias	Jul-20	$3 billion - $5 billion		Nat Cat	In 2020 dollars
Typhoon Hagibis	Oct-19	$7 billion - $16 billion		Nat Cat	Estimate range based on modelled projections of loss.
Typhoon Faxai	Sep-19	$5 billion - $9 billion		Nat Cat
Hurricane Dorian	Sep-19	$4 billion - $8.5 billion		Nat Cat
Hurricane Barry	Jul-19	$500 million		Nat Cat	Including NFIP losses
European severe storm & hail	Jun-19	$800 million	$1 billion	Nat Cat
U.S. convective weather (hail, tornado, winds)	May-19	$2.5 billion	$3.3 billion	Nat Cat
European windstorm Eberhard	Mar-19	$1.02 billion - $1.7 billion		Nat Cat
U.S. severe storm & flood	Mar-19	$800 million	$3 billion	Nat Cat
U.S. & Canada convective storm & tornadoes	Feb-19	$1.1 billion	$1.6 billion	Nat Cat
Townsville floods, Queensland, Australia	Feb-19	$900 million	$2 billion	Nat Cat
Camp wildfire	Nov-18	$12.5 billion	$16.5 billion	Nat Cat	Cause tbc, possibly man-made
Woolsey wildfire	Nov-18	$4.5 billion	$5.8 billion	Nat Cat	Cause tbc, possibly man-made
Hurricane Michael	Oct-18	$11 billion	$25 billion	Nat Cat
Lurssen shipyard fire (Germany)	Oct-18	$700 million		Man-made
Typhoon Jebi	Sep-18	~$15 billion	$20 billion	Nat Cat
Typhoon Trami	Sep-18	$3 billion	$4.5 billion	Nat Cat
Hurricane Florence	Sep-18	$5.5 billion	$24 billion	Nat Cat	(ex-NFIP, ~$7bn inc. NFIP)
Typhoon Mangkhut (Philippines, HK, China)	Sep-18	$1.5 billion	$6 billion	Nat Cat
Japanese extreme rainfall & floods	Jul-18	$2.7 billion	$10 billion	Nat Cat
Colorado hail & convective weather	Jun-18	$1.8 billion	$2.3 billion	Nat Cat
Osaka, Japan earthquake	Jun-18	$1 billion	$7 billion	Nat Cat
U.S. convective weather (hail, tornado, winds)	May-18	$2 billion		Nat Cat
Ituango dam loss, Colombia	May-18	$1.2 billion - $1.8 billion		Man-made	Latest estimate based on market sources
U.S. & Canada winter & convective weather	Apr-18	$1.1 billion	$1.4 billion	Nat Cat
U.S. winter storm	Mar-18	$1.6 billion	$2.2 billion	Nat Cat
U.S. convective weather (hail, tornado, winds)	Mar-18	$1.6 billion	$2 billion	Nat Cat
Hela Province, Papua New Guinea earthquake	Feb-18	$290 million	$530 million	Nat Cat	In 2018 dollars
European windstorm Friederike	Jan-18	$2.1 billion	$2.8 billion	Nat Cat
European windstorm Burglind	Jan-18	$900 million	$1.2 billion	Nat Cat
Thomas wildfire	Dec-17	$1.8 billion		Nat Cat	Southern California Edison's power lines deemed an ignition source.
Iran–Iraq border earthquake	Nov-17	$10 million	$800 million	Nat Cat	In 2017 dollars
Tubbs wildfire	Oct-17	$8.5 billion		Nat Cat	Deemed ignited by private electrical system. No liability for utilities.
Atlas wildfire	Oct-17	$2.7 billion		Nat Cat	Cause tbc, possibly man-made
Hurricane Irma	Sep-17	$32 billion	$67 billion	Nat Cat
Hurricane Maria	Sep-17	$30 billion	$63 billion	Nat Cat
Mexico earthquake	Sep-17	$2 billion	$6 billion	Nat Cat
Hurricane Harvey	Aug-17	$30 billion	$85 billion	Nat Cat
Typhoon Hato (China, Hong Kong, Vietnam)	Aug-17	$1.1 billion		Nat Cat
Petya / NotPetya cyber attack	Jun-17	$3 billion - $3.3 billion		Man-made
Minnesota hailstorm	Jun-17	$1.6 billion		Nat Cat
U.S. convective weather (hail, tornado, winds)	Jun-17	$1.1 billion		Nat Cat
Denver, CO hail storm	May-17	$2.5 billion	$3.1 billion	Nat Cat
Frost (Europe)	Apr-17	$1 billion		Nat Cat
Cyclone Debbie (Australia)	Mar-17	$1.3 billion		Nat Cat
U.S. convective weather (hail, tornado, winds)	Feb-17	$1.4 billion		Nat Cat
Earthquake in Kaikoura, New Zealand	Nov-16	$1.7 billion - $2.4 billion		Nat Cat	Mw 7.8
Hurricane Matthew	Oct-16	$4 billion	$4.8 billion	Nat Cat
Convective weather, flooding in Louisiana, U.S	Aug-16	$3.1 billion		Nat Cat
Convective weather in Colorado / Wyoming, U.S	Jul-16	$1.1 billion		Nat Cat
Storms Elvira and Friederike	Jun-16	$2.8 billion		Nat Cat	Germany, France
Fort McMurray wildfires	Jun-16	$2.7 billion	$7.4 billion	Nat Cat	Alberta, CA
Convective weather, flash floods in Western U.S	Apr-16	$1.1 billion		Nat Cat
Kumamoto earthquakes, Japan	Apr-16	$6 billion		Nat Cat
Flash flood, river flood in Houston, U.S	Apr-16	$1 billion		Nat Cat
Hailstorm in San Antonio, TX	Apr-16	$2.9 billion		Nat Cat
Jubilee oil field FPSO turrett damage and shutdown	Mar-16	$1.7 billion		Man-made	Latest estimate based on market sources
Hailstorm, thunderstorms in North Texas	Mar-16	$1.6 billion		Nat Cat
Floods in UK, Ireland	Dec-15	$1 billion		Nat Cat	Caused by Storms Eva and Frank
Port of Tianjin, China explosions	Aug-15	$2.5 billion to $3.5 billion		Man-made
Typhoon Goni	Aug-15	$1.1 billion		Nat Cat	Japan, Philippines, North Korea
Convective weather, flash floods	Apr-15	$1.2 billion		Nat Cat
Convective weather, severe flooding in Texas and Oklahoma, U.S	May-15	$1.4 billion		Nat Cat
Winter Storm Niklas	Mar-15	$1 billion		Nat Cat	Germany, Netherlands, et. al.
Convective weather in Northeastern U.S	Feb-15	$2 billion		Nat Cat
Hurricane Odile	Sep-14	$1.7 billion		Nat Cat	Mexico
Wind and hailstorm Ella	Jun-14	$2.1 billion		Nat Cat	France, Germany, Belgium
U.S thunderstorms, large hail, tornadoes	Jun-14	$1.2 billion		Nat Cat
U.S thunderstorms, large hail	May-14	$2.9 billion		Nat Cat
U.S thunderstorms, large hail, 83 tornadoes, flash floods	Apr-14	$1.2 billion		Nat Cat
U.S severe storms, large hail, tornadoes	Apr-14	$1 billion		Nat Cat
Snow storm	Feb-14	$2.5 billion		Nat Cat	Japan
U.S winter storm	Jan-14	$1.6 billion		Nat Cat
Windstorm Xaver	Dec-13	$1 billion		Nat Cat	UK, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden
Typhoon Haiyan, storm surge	Nov-13	$1.4 billion		Nat Cat	Philippines, Vietnam, China, Palau
Windstorm Christian (St Jude)	Oct-13	$1.4 billion		Nat Cat	Germany, Denmark, Netherlands, UK, Sweden, Belgium
Typhoon Fitow	Sep-13	$1.1 billion		Nat Cat	China, Japan
Hailstorms	Jul-13	$3.8 billion		Nat Cat	Germany, France
Floods	Jun-13	$4.1 billion		Nat Cat	Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Slovakia
U.S severe thunderstorms, tornadoes (EF5 tornado in Moore, OK)	May-13	$1.3 billion		Nat Cat
Winter storm, ice, tornadoes, heavy rains	Apr-13	$1.2 billion		Nat Cat
U.S thunderstorms, tornadoes, hail	Mar-13	$1.6 billion		Nat Cat
Hurricane Sandy	Oct-12	$31 billion		Nat Cat	In 2017 dollars
Hurricane Isaac	Aug-12	$1.6 billion		Nat Cat	U.S, et al
Drought in the Corn Belt	Jul-12	$11 billion		Nat Cat	U.S
Thunderstorms, large hail, tornadoes	Jun-12	$1 billion		Nat Cat	U.S
U.S Derecho storm with tornadoes, hail	Jun-12	$2 billion		Nat Cat	Winds up to 146 km/h
Earthquakes, italy	May-12	$1.6 billion		Nat Cat	(MW 5.9 and MW 5.7), aftershocks
Thunderstorms, hail, tornadoes	May-12	$1.7 billion		Nat Cat	U.S
Thunderstorms, large hail, tornadoes	Apr-12	$2.5 billion		Nat Cat	U.S
Severe storms, tornadoes	Mar-12	$2.5 billion		Nat Cat	U.S
Typhoon Roke	Sep-11	$1.2 billion		Nat Cat	Japan
Hurricane Irene, torrential rainfall, extensive flooding	Aug-11	$5.3 billion		Nat Cat	U.S
Thailand flooding	Jul-11	$16 billion		Nat Cat	In 2016 dollars
Storms, hail, tornadoes, floods	Jun-11	$1.3 billion		Nat Cat	Storm winds up to 113 km/h
Earthquakes	Jun-11	$2 billion		Nat Cat	MW 5.2 and MW 6.0
Severe storms, tornadoes	May-11	$7 billion		Nat Cat	U.S
Thunderstorm, tornadoes, hail	Apr-11	$1.5 billion		Nat Cat	Thunderstorm winds up to 275 km/h
Storms, tornadoes	Apr-11	$1.4 billion		Nat Cat	Storm winds up to 260 km/h, >240 tornadoes
U.S thunderstorms, hail, tornadoes	Apr-11	$2 billion		Nat Cat	Thunderstorm winds up to 210 km/h
Severe storms, tornadoes	Apr-11	$7.3 billion		Nat Cat	U.S
Earthquake & tsunami in Tohoku, Japan	Mar-11	$38.2 billion		Nat Cat	In 2017 dollars
Tropical Cyclone Yasi, Australia	Feb-11	$1.3 billion		Nat Cat	Winds up to 240 km/h
Canterbury, NZ earthquakes	Feb-11	$17 billion		Nat Cat	In 2016 dollars
Floods caused by heavy rains	Jan-11	$2.2 billion		Nat Cat	Australia
Groundhog Day Blizzard winter storm, heavy snowfall	Jan-11	$1 billion		Nat Cat	U.S
Hurricane Ike	Sep-08	$23 billion		Nat Cat	In 2017 dollars
Hurricane Katrina	Aug-05	$82 billion		Nat Cat	In 2017 dollars
Hurricane Ivan	Sep-04	$16.4 billion		Nat Cat	In 2016 dollars
Hurricane Charley	Aug-04	$9 billion		Nat Cat	In 2008 dollars
September 11th terror attacks in U.S.	Sep-01	$26 billion		Man-made	In 2017 dollars
Northridge, California earthquake	Jan-94	$25 billion		Nat Cat	In 2017 dollars
Hurricane Andrew	Aug-92	$27.8 billion		Nat Cat	In 2017 dollars
Typhoon Mireille, Japan	Sep-91	$9 billion		Nat Cat	In 2008 dollars
Piper Alpha oil platform explosion	Jul-88	$1.8 billion		Man-made	In 2013 dollars

This data is taken from a range of freely available sources, including industry reports from major insurance and reinsurance firms, risk modelling company estimates, and our own insurance and reinsurance market sources. All data is listed in US dollars unless specified as another currency.