An updated estimate of the insurance industry losses from the North Island floods now puts the total losses at NZ$1.754 billion. This new estimate, according to PERILS Asia Pacific head Darryl Pidcock, is 6% higher to the previous estimate released in mid-March, which put the losses at NZ$1.65 billion.
“Insurers are not only managing a high volume of claims for this event but face the added pressure of responding to Cyclone Gabrielle claims which occurred less than two weeks after the floods,” Pidcock said in a news release. “There are added complexities given the overlap in some regions with losses from Cyclone Gabrielle. Notwithstanding, we greatly appreciate the support of our insurance partners during such difficult and challenging times for the industry.”
The industry loss estimate considers the property lines of insurance that were liable for damages during the storms which occurred from the period from Jan. 27 to Feb. 2. Cyclone Gabrielle’s arrival soon afterward has made the estimation a challenging affair, although PERILS said that another updated estimate will be released on Aug. 2. That one will be much more comprehensive, featuring a detailed breakdown of the industry loss into postcode areas and lines of business.
In less than two weeks, the insurance data provider will also release the updated industry loss estimates coming from Cyclone Gabrielle. At the end of March, PERILS tallied the losses for Gabrielle at NZ$1.543 billion; if this new estimate for the North Island floods is a trend, it should be expected that the industry will also see an increase in the losses for Gabrielle coming from the new data.
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