As damage figures roll in from the earthquake that struckHawaii, edging into the hundred of millions, insurers will probablyend up with little in the way of losses, according to industryreports.

Hawaii Insurance Commissioner Jeffrey P. Schmidt said there islittle take-up in earthquake insurance in the state primarilybecause there are few earthquakes. He said the last major quake tohit the islands was in 1983. Lenders do not require the coveragefor homes, so there is no market driver for the coverage.

The United States Geological Survey said the 6.7 magnitude quakestruck the area at 7:07 a.m. local time Sunday, Oct. 15, causingpower outages and widespread damage. The quake was centered 65miles west of Hilo, on the island of Hawaii, popularly called theBig Island.

Reports indicate the most extensive damage was to schools, homesand infrastructure on the island of Hawaii, but facilities reopenedfor business soon after the quake. All airports were in operation,and electricity, phones, Internet and cable television service wererestored statewide by the following Tuesday.

FEMA has approved low-cost loans for homeowners and commercialowners to cover expenses not covered by insurance. The presidentsigned a disaster declaration for the state on Oct. 17.

A total of 46 companies provide some earthquake coverage, Mr.Schmidt said, and the top three writers provide it on a surpluslines basis.

According to National Underwriter's Highline Data Service, in2005 there was more than $4.4 million in direct written premium forearthquake insurance in the state. The top two underwriters of thatcoverage were American International Group, with less than 21percent of the market, and Ace American Insurance Company, withmore than 18 percent of the market.

A spokesman at AIG said the company was not prepared to discusslosses. A spokeswoman for ACE said the company is still in theprocess of gathering information and it is too early to tell whatthe claims picture will be.

The Insurance Services Office Inc.'s, Gary Kerney, assistantvice president of Property Claim Services, said there is not enoughinformation about the quake for the unit to declare a catastropheas of now. He said they are continuing to research the incident.PCS is a unit of Insurance Services Office in Jersey City, N.J.

Allison Powers, executive director of the Hawaii InsurersCouncil, said the dollar figures were hitting $100 million on theisland of Hawaii.

Other local reports suggested the figure could go higher. Forexample, Troy Kindred, civil defense administrator for the islandof Hawaii, said Kawaihae Harbor appears to have suffered much moreextensive damage than early conservative estimates of $5 million.While there is little damage on the surface, divers are findingthat chunks of the pier have given way.

Mr. Kindred said the island has only two harbors, Kawaihae andHilo, and the island is experiencing some “serious shortcomings”because only one harbor is in use.

He said early estimates of $100 million in total damage toroads, schools, business and other facilities are only ballparkfigures, but the number is expected to rise as more experts arebrought in to assess damage.

“The numbers will [become more refined] over time,” said Mr.Kindred.

More than a week after the earthquake, Mr. Schmidt said theFederal Emergency Management Administration estimated that 10 homeswere uninhabitable from earthquake damage; 153 suffered majordamage; 1,484 suffered minor damage; and 241 were “affected” by thequake.

Neal N. Nakashima, executive vice president of Aon Risk ServicesInc. of Hawaii, said carriers were flooding the island with claimsrepresentatives, apparently to make sure there were enough peopleto handle the job. However, it will be weeks before any claimsestimates are produced, he said.

Much of the damage is not obvious and will require carefulexamination, Mr. Nakashima said. Repairs could take longer as thereis a shortage of contractors on the islands.

The sense is that the earthquake will not be a majorcatastrophic loss, he continued. However, it will be interesting tosee how insurers treat homeowner damage that occurs in theaftermath of the earthquake.

Mr. Schmidt said one outgrowth of the quake may be that morehomeowners would show interest in purchasing earthquakeinsurance.