winter storm Uri

Insurance and reinsurance industry catastrophe claims are likely running around 34% above the 10-year average for the year-to-date thanks to the significant contribution from US winter storms and freezing weather, according to analysts at Jefferies.

Bermuda headquartered ILS fund and investment manager ILS Capital Management, has said that it expects that industry losses suffered from the recent winter storms and Arctic blast in the United States will drive renewal rates higher at the mid-year and also further into 2022.

The intensity of extreme cold events such as the recent US winter storms and Arctic deep freeze may become more volatile as the climate changes, Aon has warned, saying that the February loss event will be a record.

The size of the estimated winter storm insurance and reinsurance market loss from February’s severe Arctic freeze and the issues suffered by energy organisation the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, Inc. (ERCOT) has raised speculation over the chances of subrogation becoming a possibility for carriers.

Insurance and reinsurance market losses from winter storm Uri and related severe winter weather in the United States may become another factor in the availability of alternative capital, given the loss will highlight the risk of catastrophes being unmodelled and perhaps heighten climate change concerns, S&P has warned.

After seeing their prices drop significantly in the wake of the US winter storms and severe freezing weather, a number of the exposed aggregate catastrophe bond tranches have now experienced a meaningful price recovery in the latest cat bond secondary market price sheets.

The complexities surrounding the development of an ultimate of insurance and reinsurance market losses from the recent US winter storm event are set to be significant, with broker Aon warning to expect a prolonged period of loss creep.

Industry losses from recent winter storm activity in the United States are seen as another driver for more firming of reinsurance prices at the key mid-year renewals, according to analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods.

The recent severe winter storm losses in the United States are only expected to have an attritional effect on certain aggregate catastrophe bonds, while per-occurrence bonds are expected to escape loss, according to Plenum Investments.

Secondary market prices have dropped for some catastrophe bonds in the wake of recent severe winter storm losses in the United States, with aggregate Residential Re cat bonds, sponsored by primary military mutual insurer USAA, the names in investor focus.