Catastrophe loss data aggregator PERILS has announced a revised property loss estimate of AUD 766 million (USD 530 million) for the December 2018 Sydney hailstorms.
At AUD 766 million, the third insured property loss estimate from PERILS for the event is up 21% on the AUD 633 million (USD 438 million) estimate issued by the firm in March, 2019.
The loss estimate only includes property business, with motor and other lines of business not included in the total.
The hailstorms struck the Sydney, Central Coast and South East Queensland region of Australia, damaging residential and commercial properties as well as automobiles. PERILS said previously that it expects the event to become one of the largest Australian hailstorms on record.
PERILS notes that its third loss estimate is the first time that a detailed market loss footprint which is based on collected insurance loss data, is made available for an Australian hail event. The cat loss data aggregator explains that event loss information is provided by postcode and by property lines of business and includes information on damage degrees and hail intensities, which are based on radar measurements from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology.
“This market loss footprint for the Sydney Hailstorms perfectly illustrates the PERILS value proposition. Our goal is to increase data availability for natural catastrophe events to help better understand and manage natural catastrophe risk. This report also breaks new data ground in that it is the first time that an Australian hail event has been provided in such granularity for both losses and intensities. Reliable historical data are the fundamental base of any meaningful Cat risk assessment,” said Darryl Pidcock, Head of PERILS Asia-Pacific.
According to PERILS, the newly available market loss footprint data enables subscribers to compare the loss footprint information with market sums insured for the affected regions, adding that damage degree functions as a percentage of sums insured can then be derived and correlated with hail intensities.
Updated and more comprehensive risk models provide market participants with an improved view of the risk, enabling greater understanding into how hail events like this impact the Australian property market.
“We are grateful for the ongoing support of insurers, particularly as the preparation of detailed loss information took place during the busy financial year end and reinsurance renewals period. We hope to repay some of that effort through the provision of high-quality industry data, assisting the market to manage Cat risk in a sustainable manner,” added Pidcock.
PERILS with release its fourth estimate for the event on December 20th, 2019 which is 12 months after the event.
