Analysts at Aon have reported that the severe storms that impacted the US from April 23rd to 29th will cause total economic losses in excess of $1 billion, of which the majority will be insured.
Storms affected the Southern Plains and Southeast, with tornado, large hail, and straight-line wind damage in particular impacting portions of Texas, Alabama, and Georgia.
Thunderstorms and flash flooding associated with a frontal system impacted regions across the central High Plains, Southern Pains, and Mississippi Valley, and destructive hailstorms left extensive damage in highly populated areas near San Antonio and Fort Worth in Texas, and Norman in Oklahoma.
Given that most of the damage was wind or hail-related, Aon believes that the majority of costs will be covered by insurance.
The broker noted that hail related claims continue to be the primary driver of thunderstorm related losses in the US in recent years, enhanced by explosive population growth in high-risk regions.
It added that the severe convective storm (SCS) peril has become a significant annual loss driver in the US, with the insurance industry alone having recorded at least $10 billion in SCS-related losses since 2008.
2020 featured a record 20 individual events that prompted more than $500 million in public or private insurance entity payouts, and the overall insured SCS loss in 2020 was $36 billion, which surpassed the previous record of $32 billion set in 2011.
