Catastrophe by numbers
Nat cat and climate data for 2024 paints a picture of escalating losses, with plenty more to come as the world gets hotter
In the new year, as most eyes turned to California and the unprecedented winter wildfires ripping through parts of LA, some in the (re)insurance industry were still busy tallying 2024’s natural disaster losses. Now the key reports are all out – and they make for grim reading.
It was a year when climate change really “showed its claws”, according to Munich Re’s annual round-up.
“One record-breaking high after another – the consequences are devastating,” the reinsurer’s board of management member Thomas Blunck says. “The destructive forces of climate change are becoming increasingly evident, as backed up by science.”
Munich Re says global natural disaster insured losses last year totalled $US140 billion, with overall losses of $US320 billion – well up on the inflation-adjusted averages of the past 10 and 30 years. Since 1980, only two years have been more expensive for the insurance industry.
Swiss Re’s breakdown of 2024 natural disaster losses notes insured losses broke the $US100 billion mark for the fifth consecutive year.
“Much of this increasing loss burden results from value concentration in urban areas, economic growth, and increasing rebuilding costs,” head of catastrophe perils Balz Grollimund says.
“By favouring the conditions leading to many of [the] year’s catastrophes, climate change is also playing an increasing role. This is why investing in mitigation and adaptation measures must become a priority.”
Perils-owned nat cat analyst CRESTA says 2024 was the “year of the floods, while 2023 was dominated by losses from severe convective storms.
“Both perils are affected by the warming climate, with more energy and moisture in the atmosphere creating the potential for more extreme weather events.”
It’s annual assessment of $US1 billion-plus events outside the US says the flooding around Valencia in Spain in late October was the costliest disaster, with industry losses topping $3.9 billion.
“The [non-US] international loss tally for billion-dollar events amounts to $US18.2 billion, slightly below the indexed long-term average of $US19.9 billion.”
The report flags eight $US1 billion-plus events for the year, six of them floods.
Aon’s review of 2024 catastrophes puts insured losses at $US145 billion, on overall losses of $US368 billion.
“Global losses surpassed $US300 billion for the ninth time in a row and were 14% higher than the long-term average.
Some territories suffered a disproportionate impact relative to their economic output, such as the island of Mayotte from Cyclone Chido,” the broker says. “Spain, Brazil, UAE and Vietnam all recorded their costliest insurance events.”
Gallagher Re has the highest figure for 2024 economic losses, at $US417 billion.
