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Facts + Statistics: Global catastrophes
2018 natural catastrophes
Overall losses from world-wide natural catastrophes in 2018 totaled $160 billion dollars, down from $350 billion in 2017, according to Munich Re. There were 850 events that caused losses in 2018, compared with 740 events in the prior year. Insured losses from the 2018 events totaled $80 billion, down from $140 billion in 2017. Insured losses in 2018 were $19 billion or 31 percent higher than the average of the prior ten years, 2008 to 2017. Natural catastrophes in 2018 caused 10,400 deaths, compared with 13,000 in 2017 and 60,000 in the ten years ending in 2017.
Ranked by insured losses, the costliest natural catastrophe in 2018 was the Camp Fire in California that caused $12.5 billion in insured losses, according to Munich Re. Hurricane Michael in the United States and Cuba resulted in $10 billion in insured losses. Rounding out the top 5 catastrophes by insured losses were Typhoon Jebi in Japan and Taiwan with $9 billion in losses; Hurricane Florence in the United States that resulted in losses of $5.0 billion; and the Woolsey Fire in California that caused $4 billion in losses. Losses for the hurricanes and wildfires in the United States are preliminary.
World Natural Catastrophes, 2018
Source: © 2019 Munich Re, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of March 2019.
World Natural Catastrophes By Type Of Event, 2018
(Percentage distribution)
Source: © 2019 Munich Re, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of March 2019.
World Natural Catastrophes By Continent, 2018
(Percentage distribution)
Source: © 2019 Munich Re, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of March 2019.
World Weather-Related Catastrophes By Type Of Event, 2018
(Percentage distribution)
Source: © 2019 Munich Re, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of March 2019.
World Weather-Related Natural Catastrophes By Continent, 2018
(Percentage distribution)
Source: © 2019 Munich Re, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of March 2019.
Top 5 World Costliest Natural Catastrophes By Overall Losses, 2018 (1)
(1) U.S. losses include the loss estimation based on Property Claim Services (PCS).
Source: © 2019 Munich Re, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of March 2019.
Top 5 World Costliest Natural Catastrophes By Insured Losses, 2018 (1)
(1) U.S. losses include the loss estimation based on Property Claims Services (PCS).
Source: © 2019 Munich Re, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of March 2019.
Top 5 World Natural Catastrophes By Fatalities, 2018 (1)
(1) Fatalities for the December 22 volcanic activity and tsunami event in Indonesia are preliminary.
Source: © 2019 Munich Re, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of March 2019.
World Natural Catastrophes By Overall And Insured Losses, 1980–2018
Source: © 2019 Munich Re, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of March 2019.
Number Of World Natural Catastrophes, 1980-2018
(Number of relevant events by peril)
Source: © 2019 Munich Re, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of March 2019.
World Weather-Related Natural Catastrophes By Overall And Insured Losses, 1980-2018
Source: © 2019 Munich Re, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of March 2019.
World Weather-Related Natural Catastrophes By Peril, 1980-2018
(Number of relevant events by peril)
Source: © 2019 Munich Re, Geo Risks Research, NatCatSERVICE. As of March 2019.
Natural and Man-made Disasters
Swiss Re collects global insured losses resulting from natural catastrophes and man-made disasters. Besides including man-made disasters, Swiss Re figures differ from other companies because Swiss Re uses different collection methods and criteria. According to Swiss Re’s report on global losses from February 2019, insured losses totaled $85 billion in 2018, down from $144 billion in 2017, the highest annual insured losses since Swiss Re began keeping records. 2018 losses were the fourth highest on record and above the previous 10-year average of $71 billion. According to Swiss Re, the largest insurance loss came from California’s Camp Fire, which generated $12 billion in losses, followed by Hurricane Michael in Florida and Typhoon Jebi in Japan. There were 304 disaster events in 2018, of which 181 were natural disasters and 123 were man-made events. Natural disasters accounted for $76 billion in losses, compared with $143 billion in 2017. Man-made disasters accounted for the remaining $9 billion in losses. By region, North America accounted for most of the insured losses in 2018, at about $53 billion, and amounted to almost 63 percent of world insured losses. Most of those losses resulted from wildfires, thunderstorms and hurricanes. In 2018, 13,500 people worldwide perished in natural and man-made disasters. Swiss Re emphasized that large losses from secondary perils have been occurring more frequently. Secondary perils are those that are independent and have a higher frequency when compared to catastrophes such as hurricanes and earthquakes and have low to medium severity; or events that occur as a secondary effect of a primary event, such as tsunami following an earthquake. The Camp Fire of 2018 is classified as a secondary peril loss because the fire wiped out development in a wildland-urban interface area that was stricken by drought. Swiss Re says that 60 percent of insured losses in 2018 stemmed from secondary perils following an earthquake.
Nuclear incidents
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) rates the severity of nuclear incidents on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale (INES) from one (indicating an anomaly) to seven (indicating a major event). The scale considers an event’s impact based on three criteria: its effect on people and the environment; whether it caused unsafe levels of radiation in a facility; and if preventive measures did not function as intended. Scales six and seven designate full meltdowns, where the nuclear fuel reactor core overheats and melts. Partial meltdowns, in which the fuel is damaged, are rated four or five.
Japan’s Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency assigned a rating of seven to the March 2011 accident at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The 1986 Chernobyl accident in the former Soviet Union is the only other incident to rate a seven. The Chernobyl incident killed 56 people directly and thousands of others indirectly through cancer and other diseases. The 2011 incident released high amounts of radiation and caused widespread evacuations in affected areas but only one death to date.
The 1979 Three Mile Island accident in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the worst nuclear accident in the United States, was designated a five. Insurers paid about $71 million in liability claims and litigation costs associated with the accident. In addition to the liability payments to the public under the Price-Anderson Act, $300 million was paid by a pool of insurers to the operator of the damaged nuclear power plant under its property insurance policy.
Selected Examples of Historic Nuclear Events, as Classified by the INES Scale (1)
|
(1) International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale.
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency. INES Flyer.
Top 15 World Property Damage Losses In The Hydrocarbon Industry (1)
(US $ millions)
|
(1) Property damage only.
(2) Inflated to December 2017 values.
(3) Exploration and production.
Source: The 100 Largest Losses, 1978-2017, March 2018, Marsh & McLennan Companies.
Insurance Catastrophe Loss Review: Oil Spills: View PowerPoint Presentation slides.
