NU Online News Service, Feb. 8, 12:00 p.m.EST

Independent reinsurance brokerage firm Holborn said the firstquarter has been an eventful one for reinsurers, who will postlosses on several events including a recent cyclone and flooding inAustralia and developing losses from the New Zealand and Chileanearthquakes in 2010.

Losses in the first quarter will eclipse $4 billion, or 10points to the industry's loss and combined ratios, Holbornsaid.

The brokerage estimates losses and expenses of between $1.5billion and $3 billion due to Cyclone Yasi, which struckQueensland, Australia early this month.

Catastrophe modeler AIR Worldwide said insured losses from Yasi will be between $354 millionand $1.5 billion. The prediction includes only insured physicaldamage to onshore property and business interruption.

Yasi was the equivalent of a Category 4 hurricane and hit closeto where Cyclone Larry made landfall in 2005. Larry caused morethan $500 million in insured losses and modeler EQECAT said Yasi'saffected area has two to five times the building values, Holbornreported.

In addition, crop damage is also insured by the private sectorin Australia, Holborn said.

Holborn's estimate for Yasi includes additional flood, crop,automobile and life losses.

Flagstone Reinsurance Holdings said Yasi and flooding thatoccurred in Australia earlier this year are expected to affectfirst quarter 2011 results but the reinsurer is still assessing itsexposure. Flooding in Queensland during December 2010 is expectedto cause losses of $10 million, net of reinstatement premiums andretrocession, Flagstone said.

“The amount of loss that is reinsured will depend on whichcarriers are exposed and the number of occurrences,” Holborncommented on the late 2010 flooding.

Reinsurer PartnerRe Ltd. said Australia flooding in December is expected tocost the company between $25 million and $35 million, and reportedthat its non-life segment combined ratio during the fourth quarterwas 94.6 compared to 80.3 the year before. Twelve points were addeddue to revisions in losses from the New Zealand quake andAustralian flooding.

Holborn said losses from New Zealand and Chile continue todevelop. Reinsurers' disclosures for both events continue to fallbelow estimates from catastrophe modeling firms, Holborn pointedout.

Flagstone Re said it expects aggregate covers to be triggeredand losses of $25 million for the fourth quarter due to the eventsin New Zealand and Australia in 2010.

For the winter storms in the United States, Holborn said lossesare likely to exceed last year's loss estimate of $5 billion. Thestorms will spur losses to some regional catastrophe programs andcause some losses on collapses.