Winter Storm Elliot delivers $5.4bn in insured losses from deep freeze

Winter Storm Elliott likely delivered insured losses of $5.4 billion across 42 states after sweeping the bulk of the US at the peak of the Holiday season,  Karen Clark & Co. estimates based on its high-resolution US winter storm reference model.

Freezing temperatures account for the "vast majority" of the losses on account of infrastructure disruptions and burst pipes throughout the residential, commercial, and industrial sectors, KCC analysts claimed.

Commercial losses are projected to account for over 50% of the insured losses.

Arctic air headed south from December 21 to push air temperatures to levels some 20°F below average across most of the east, the delivered sub-freezing temperatures as far south as the Gulf coast and the southeast.

The arctic outbreak differed from the 2021 winter storms in that low pressure zones created accompanying storm systems. An extratropical cyclone formed rather aggressively over the Great Lakes, dumping heavy snowfall in western New York state.

The most impacted states are Texas, Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and New York.

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