Windstorm Burglind (Eleanor) industry loss estimate rises again

The estimate of insurance and reinsurance industry losses caused by European windstorm Burglind, which was known as Eleanor in the United Kingdom and Ireland, has risen to EUR 756 million (US $860m), a 4.4% increase.

According to PERILS AG, the catastrophe loss data aggregator, one-year after windstorm Burglind struck the insurance industry loss has kept rising.

Being one year after the loss event though this is the last report PERILS will provide on the event, hence any further loss creep will not be accounted for under its estimate process.

Extratropical cyclone Eleanor or Burglind caused significant damage resulting in insured losses across Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom between 2nd and 3rd January 2018.

Catastrophe loss data aggregator PERILS first estimated the insurance and reinsurance industry wide market loss from storm Burglind / Eleanor at EUR 643 million in February, then a 6% hike to EUR 680 million ($785m) at the second update in April, followed by another 6%  rise to EUR 724 million in July 2018.

As once of the larger windstorms to strike the UK and Ireland last year, Burglind, or Eleanor has clearly continued to drive loss creep as claims have been settled, resulting in the steadily rising industry total and we understand a number of smaller reinsurance claims.

PERILS notes that the storm had a particularly large impact in Switzerland, while the incurred industry loss levels for the other countries affected were not all that unusual.

For Switzerland though, the industry loss level from windstorm Burglind would be expected to be reached or exceeded once in approximately 14 years, PERILS said.

Burglind provides a good example of a European market catastrophe loss, that while not particularly large has been relatively complex to sum up, given its impacts across a wide area.

A much stronger windstorm with a similar footprint would cause significant insurance and reinsurance market impacts, which could highlight the relatively under-priced nature of some catastrophe programs in the European region.