April, May, and June 2008 are unlikely to be remembered fondly by U.S. insurers, as the three month span saw property losses estimated at over $6 billion.

The insured property damage in the second quarter almost doubled the losses incurred in the first, according to preliminary analysis by ISO's Property Claim Services (PCS) unit. Property/casualty insurers are expected to dish out roughly $6.025 billion for second-quarter property losses resulting from 16 catastrophes in 27 states — almost twice the number of catastrophes in the first quarter.

ISO's PCS unit defines a catastrophe as an event that causes $25 million or more in insured property losses and affects a significant number of policyholders and insurers.

It is estimated that the 16 catastrophes of second-quarter 2008 generated 1,223,500 claims that averaged nearly $5,000 each.

At $1.08 billion, Texas topped the list of the five most severely affected states, followed by Minnesota at $810 million, Kansas at $578 million, Arkansas at $450 million, and Oklahoma at $425 million.

2008's saw the costliest second quarter since 2001, when insured losses reached $6.24 billion.

A complete summary of second-quarter losses and number of catastrophes since 1999:

Year

Insured Loss ($)

# of catastrophes

1999

3.50 billion

13

2000

1.46 billion

10

2001

6.24 billion

9

2002

2.79 billion

10

2003

5.05 billion

4

2004

2.33 billion

6

2005

930 million

4

2006

5.04 billion

13

2007

2.3 billion

6

2008

6.03 billion

16

For more information, visit ISO's PCS unit online.

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