June 2020
- South Carolina was impacted by three of the ten costliest hurricanes based on insured damage: Hurricane Michael in 2018, Hurricane Irma in 2017 and Hurricane Charley in 2004.
- Between 37,000 and 359,000 single-family homes are at risk of damage from storm surge in South Carolina, according to CoreLogic. In terms of reconstruction costs, storm surge damage ranges from $10.3 billion to $85.0 billion. The ranges reflect the intensity of hurricanes, with the lower range corresponding to a weak hurricane and the highest range reflecting damage from a Category 1 to a Category 4 hurricane.
- About 2.1 million people were living in coastal areas of South Carolina in 2015, according to the U.S. Census Bureau (a 7 percent increase from 2010).
- South Carolina had 206,826 flood insurance policies in force in 2018, according to the National Flood Insurance Program. Standard homeowners policies typically do not cover flood damage. Flood insurance is covered by the National Flood Insurance Program and an increasing number of private insurers.
- The South Carolina Wind and Hail Underwriting Association (SCWHUA), known as the Beach Plan or Wind Pool, is the market of last resort that provides wind and hail coverage to residential and commercial property owners in the coastal area of the state.
- As of fiscal year 2019, the South Carolina Beach Plan had a total of 19,720 policies in force, down from 29,833 policies in force at the end of fiscal year 2016. The plan had an exposure of $5.8 billion in fiscal year 2019 down from $9.7 billion in 2016.
Top 10 Writers Of Commercial Insurance In South Carolina By Direct Premiums Written, 2019 (1)
| Rank |
Group/company |
Direct premiums written ($000) |
Market share |
| 1 |
Travelers Companies Inc. |
$236,869 |
5.7% |
| 2 |
Liberty Mutual |
227,152 |
5.4 |
| 3 |
Chubb |
180,422 |
4.3 |
| 4 |
Zurich |
171,261 |
4.1 |
| 5 |
Hartford Financial Services |
149,647 |
3.6 |
| 6 |
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. |
149,302 |
3.6 |
| 7 |
American International Group (AIG) |
136,337 |
3.3 |
| 8 |
Auto-Owners Insurance Co. |
123,832 |
3.0 |
| 9 |
Nationwide Mutual Group |
117,757 |
2.8 |
| 10 |
CNA |
106,204 |
2.5 |
(1) Before reinsurance transactions.
Source: NAIC data, sourced from S&P Global Market Intelligence, Insurance Information Institute.
Top 10 Writers Of Homeowners Insurance In South Carolina By Direct Premiums Written, 2019 (1)
| Rank |
Group/company |
Direct premiums written ($000) |
Market share |
| 1 |
State Farm |
$370,908 |
20.0% |
| 2 |
Allstate Corp. |
181,495 |
9.8 |
| 3 |
USAA Insurance Group |
170,415 |
9.2 |
| 4 |
Travelers Companies Inc. |
108,663 |
5.9 |
| 5 |
Nationwide Mutual Group |
81,141 |
4.4 |
| 6 |
Liberty Mutual |
80,320 |
4.3 |
| 7 |
South Carolina Farm Bureau Federation |
64,553 |
3.5 |
| 8 |
Auto-Owners Insurance Co. |
53,673 |
2.9 |
| 9 |
UPC Insurance |
49,717 |
2.7 |
| 10 |
Farmers Insurance Group |
48,183 |
2.6 |
(1) Before reinsurance transactions.
Source: NAIC data, sourced from S&P Global Market Intelligence, Insurance Information Institute.
Top 10 Writers Of Private Passenger Auto Insurance In South Carolina By Direct Premiums Written, 2019 (1)
| Rank |
Group/company |
Direct premiums written ($000) |
Market share |
| 1 |
State Farm |
$959,582 |
21.2% |
| 2 |
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. |
633,024 |
14.0 |
| 3 |
Progressive |
556,502 |
12.3 |
| 4 |
Allstate Corp. |
520,177 |
11.5 |
| 5 |
USAA |
442,544 |
9.8 |
| 6 |
Nationwide |
219,800 |
4.9 |
| 7 |
Travelers |
213,434 |
4.7 |
| 8 |
Liberty Mutual |
208,172 |
4.6 |
| 9 |
Southern Farm Bureau Casualty |
136,682 |
3.0 |
| 10 |
Auto-Owners Insurance |
99,342 |
2.2 |
(1) Before reinsurance transactions.
Source: NAIC data, sourced from S&P Global Market Intelligence, Insurance Information Institute.
Top 10 Costliest Hurricanes In The United States (1)
| |
|
|
Estimated insured loss |
| Rank |
Year |
Hurricane |
Dollars when occurred |
In 2024 dollars (2) |
| 1 |
2005 |
Hurricane Katrina |
$65,000 |
$104,471 |
| 2 |
2022 |
Hurricane Ian |
54,000 |
57,231 |
| 3 |
2021 |
Hurricane Ida |
36,000 |
41,540 |
| 4 |
2012 |
Hurricane Sandy |
30,000 |
40,939 |
| 5 |
2017 |
Hurricane Harvey |
30,000 |
38,571 |
| 6 |
2017 |
Hurricane Irma |
30,050 |
38,432 |
| 7 |
2017 |
Hurricane Maria |
29,511 |
37,743 |
| 8 |
1992 |
Hurricane Andrew |
16,000 |
35,845 |
| 9 |
2008 |
Hurricane Ike |
18,200 |
26,259 |
| 10 |
2024 |
Hurricane Milton |
20,000 |
20,000 |
(1) Includes Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and losses sustained by private insurers and government-sponsored programs such as the National Flood Insurance Program. Subject to change as loss estimates are further developed. As of January 2025.
(2) Adjusted for inflation by Aon using the U.S. Consumer Price Index.
Source: Aon.
Storm Surge Risk By State By Number Of Single-Family Homes and Reconstruction Value, 2019 (1)
| |
|
Number of single-family homes at risk by storm category (2) |
| Rank |
State |
Category 1 |
Category 2 |
Category 3 |
Category 4 |
Category 5 |
| 1 |
Florida |
358,902 |
1,085,288 |
1,788,071 |
2,338,348 |
2,830,201 |
| 2 |
Louisiana |
74,792 |
213,442 |
637,354 |
765,612 |
839,321 |
| 3 |
Texas |
40,633 |
121,010 |
259,993 |
393,837 |
555,569 |
| 4 |
New Jersey |
94,083 |
276,872 |
381,551 |
471,143 |
(3) |
| 5 |
New York |
76,797 |
227,962 |
351,783 |
467,398 |
(3) |
| 6 |
Virginia |
23,321 |
89,387 |
243,401 |
365,134 |
409,259 |
| 7 |
South Carolina |
37,155 |
130,565 |
216,551 |
304,442 |
359,024 |
| 8 |
North Carolina |
33,200 |
97,158 |
163,632 |
213,922 |
264,264 |
| 9 |
Massachusetts |
9,310 |
45,042 |
101,171 |
157,311 |
(3) |
| 10 |
Georgia |
9,863 |
54,777 |
112,747 |
151,627 |
163,191 |
| 11 |
Maryland |
16,473 |
58,141 |
96,774 |
124,684 |
(3) |
| 12 |
Mississippi |
9,005 |
29,381 |
60,167 |
90,360 |
102,199 |
| 13 |
Pennsylvania |
924 |
21,406 |
58,659 |
85,480 |
(3) |
| 14 |
Connecticut |
6,874 |
29,194 |
47,292 |
68,022 |
(3) |
| 15 |
Alabama |
5,777 |
15,596 |
29,234 |
41,164 |
54,586 |
| 16 |
Delaware |
11,027 |
31,329 |
49,517 |
67,320 |
(3) |
| 17 |
Rhode Island |
1,391 |
7,423 |
16,513 |
25,354 |
(3) |
| 18 |
Maine |
5,846 |
8,300 |
12,336 |
18,824 |
(3) |
| 19 |
New Hampshire |
186 |
3,999 |
7,069 |
9,315 |
(3) |
| |
Total homes potentially affected |
815,559 |
2,546,272 |
4,633,815 |
6,158,577 |
7,071,745 |
| |
|
Reconstruction cost value of single-family homes at risk (4) ($ millions) |
| Rank |
State |
Category 1 |
Category 2 |
Category 3 |
Category 4 |
Category 5 |
| 1 |
Florida |
$73,255.3 |
$225,758.2 |
$372,102.5 |
$482,986.8 |
$581,641.5 |
| 2 |
New York |
30,075.0 |
94,513.9 |
145,839.3 |
194,358.1 |
(3) |
| 3 |
Louisiana |
16,343.1 |
47,945.9 |
151,667.9 |
182,479.3 |
200,785.2 |
| 4 |
New Jersey |
27,035.0 |
84,599.0 |
119,106.5 |
149,676.0 |
(3) |
| 5 |
Texas |
7,399.5 |
22,434.1 |
50,758.8 |
80,141.0 |
112,087.7 |
| 6 |
Virginia |
6,046.8 |
22,878.8 |
58,270.3 |
87,017.7 |
98,744.9 |
| 7 |
South Carolina |
10,377.6 |
34,543.8 |
54,837.2 |
74,049.4 |
85,214.8 |
| 8 |
North Carolina |
7,094.4 |
20,928.6 |
35,570.1 |
46,843.7 |
57,973.4 |
| 9 |
Massachusetts |
2,381.6 |
12,625.7 |
28,897.8 |
46,442.6 |
(3) |
| 10 |
Georgia |
2,980.9 |
14,662.9 |
27,079.1 |
35,130.6 |
37,325.4 |
| 11 |
Maryland |
4,046.8 |
13,834.2 |
23,084.4 |
29,768.4 |
(3) |
| 12 |
Connecticut |
2,429.5 |
9,913.0 |
15,895.6 |
22,659.2 |
(3) |
| 13 |
Mississippi |
1,947.1 |
6,186.9 |
12,375.8 |
18,241.7 |
20,554.7 |
| 14 |
Pennsylvania |
214.4 |
5,013.7 |
14,187.6 |
20,823.0 |
(3) |
| 15 |
Delaware |
3,159.6 |
8,797.1 |
14,026.2 |
19,121.3 |
(3) |
| 16 |
Alabama |
1,143.4 |
2,917.3 |
5,387.9 |
7,534.0 |
9,888.1 |
| 17 |
Rhode Island |
351.3 |
2,039.2 |
4,669.2 |
7,321.1 |
(3) |
| 18 |
Maine |
1,294.4 |
1,970.7 |
3,031.9 |
4,738.2 |
(3) |
| 19 |
New Hampshire |
33.9 |
693.9 |
1,395.2 |
1,988.6 |
(3) |
| |
Total homes potentially affected |
$197,609.5 |
$632,257.0 |
$1,138,183.1 |
$1,511,320.6 |
$1,701,112.2 |
(1) The risk categories are cumulative and increase in value from Category 1 to Category 5. Category 1 represents the higher risk of damage from a weak hurricane; Category 5 includes Categories 1 to 4 and the low risk of damage from a Category 5 hurricane.
(2) Measured in units.
(3) Storm surge risk for Category 5 storms for homes on the northeastern Atlantic Coast is not shown due to the extremely low probability of a Category 5 storm affecting these areas.
(4) Represents the cost to completely rebuild including labor and materials by geographic location.
Source: CoreLogic®, a property data and analytics company.
Other Resources
I.I.I. Facts & Stats: Flood Insurance
I.I.I. Facts & Stats: Hurricanes
I.I.I. Issues Updates: Catastrophes
I.I.I. Issues Updates: Hurricane and Windstorm Deductibles
South Carolina Wind and Underwriting Association Website
