European windstorm Ciara costliest since Friederike, says Aon

Windstorm Ciara, also known as 'Sabine', which battered Europe in February, is said to be the costliest event for the peril since Friederike in 2018, according to Aon.

The re/insurance broker has released its global catastrophe report, which evaluates the impact of the natural disaster events that occurred worldwide during February 2020.

Preliminary public estimates by insurers and industry groups placed the total insured loss from storm Ciara at well above €1 billion ($1.1 billion), with a majority occurring in Germany. The total economic loss will be even higher, Aon said.

Ciara brought strong winds, torrential rain and widespread flooding across 17 European countries. At least 14 people were killed. Major wind-related damage was incurred on property and automobiles.

In the US, a potent winter storm marked by widespread severe thunderstorms, flooding, and accumulating snow caused total economic losses of more than $925 million; insured losses topped $675 million. At least 37 confirmed tornadoes touched down, which resulted in fatalities and injuries. Among the hardest-hit areas in terms of physical damage occurred in the Southeast – including Mississippi, Alabama, Kentucky, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. Flash flood damage was also cited.

Meanwhile in Australia, as per the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA), the nation faced its sixth insurance catastrophe in five months. A powerful coastal area of low pressure – known as an “East Coast Low” – brought severe thunderstorms, very gusty winds, and some of the heaviest rainfall to the Sydney metro region in 30 years. Storm damage was widespread across numerous communities in New South Wales and Queensland. The ICA preliminarily cited that at least 21,000 claims had been filed and payouts were expected to top A$100 million ($67 million).

Michal Lorinc, catastrophe analyst for Aon’s Impact Forecasting team, commented: “February was a meteorologically active month for windstorms in Europe, as no fewer than six notable storms traversed western and central sections of the continent. The most significant was Windstorm Ciara (Sabine), which affected 18 nations and became the costliest storm since Friederike in 2018.

"Insurers have now noted nearly USD3.0 billion in payouts from the 2019/20 season, which is above this century's average for the peril though far smaller than peak years in 1990 and 1999. Despite being manageable for the industry, the elevated losses continue to serve reminder that robust risk management remains imperative and reliable catastrophe modeling solutions can help with those initiatives.”