Flooding and storms in Europe result in significant economic loss in November

Flooding and inland storms led to multi-billion-dollar economic losses in western and southern Europe during the November, according to the monthly Global Catastrophe Recap report from professional services firm Aon.

Italy suffered the majority of losses as an active stretch of cyclonic weather resulted in significant flooding and severe weather.

Total aggregated economic losses, including the effects of tidal flooding in Venice, were tentatively estimated at €1.7 billion ($1.9 billion), with insurers in Austria alone citing losses reaching well into the tens of millions of euros. Further flooding events in France, Italy and England during November resulted in combined economic losses expected to exceed $1.0 billion.

Michal Lorinc, catastrophe analyst within Aon’s Impact Forecasting team, said: “Despite a costly November resulting from major flooding events in the UK, France, Italy and Austria, European insurers have generally endured manageable losses thus far in 2019. The flood peril has also recently been active across East Africa as excessive rainfall and flooding have led to significant humanitarian impacts.

“The issue of financial maturity remains an important topic in different parts of the world. The insurance industry is expected to play an even more integral role in helping to introduce sustainable and tailored products and solutions to further promote resilience and preparedness.”

Meanwhile, two catastrophes were declared by the Insurance Council of Australia due to bushfires and hail. As of November 22, at least 1,525 claims had been filed due to the fires, with insured losses listed at A$165 million ($112 million). Nearly 16,000 claims were reported due to the hailstorm in Queensland, with losses estimates at A$120 million. The overall economic cost was even higher.

Cyclone Matmo – also locally named “Bulbul” – made landfall near the India and Bangladesh border on November 9 (UTC), killing at least 39 people. Total economic losses were preliminarily estimated at upwards of Re238 billion ($3.3 billion).