P-C Sector 3rd-Quarter Cat Loss Was $1.1 Billion

Six catastrophes in 11 states during the third-quarter caused an estimated insured loss to homes and businesses of $1.125 billion, Property Claim Services said.

PCS, a unit of Jersey City, N.J.-based Insurance Services Office, said according to its preliminary analysis the catastrophes during the period generated 260,000 claims.

The firm said that so far this year catastrophes have caused approximately $4.7 billion in insured property damage resulting from an estimated 997,000 claims nationwide.

Third-quarter catastrophes, PCS said, hit 11 states across the Midwest from Colorado to Pennsylvania.

PCS reported that Minnesota and Illinois were affected by three of the six catastrophic events and suffered the greatest insured property damage from the storms.

During the third quarter, 62 percent of the total loss affected personal lines risks, with 20 percent affecting commercial lines and 18 percent involving loss to vehicles, PCS said.

PCS has also published a final estimate for Hurricane Katrina, revising it upward by $6.7 billion. The nation's costliest hurricane struck the Gulf Coast in 2005. According to PCS' latest data, approximately $41.1 billion is related to nearly 1.75 million claims reported in the aftermath of the hurricane.

In October of 2005 PCS had estimated losses from Hurricane Katrina would cost U.S. insurers $34.4 billion in insured property losses.

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.