| Release: Immediate Contacts:
Susan Boyle / Jessica Riccardi
MWW Group (for ISO)
201-507-9500
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
/
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
EDITORS' ADVISORY CATASTROPHE BACKGROUNDER: CLAIMS AND PROPERTY-LOSS INFORMATION JERSEY CITY, N.J., June 11, 2003 — The U.S. hurricane season, which began this month and runsthrough November, exposes tens of millions of people living along the eastern seaboard and the GulfCoast states to devastating property losses from hurricanes and tropical storms. The attached fact sheet is a useful source of background material for your coverage of natural disasters in the coming months. The information is compiled from Insurance Services Office, Inc.'s (ISO) Property Claim Services (PCS) database on property losses for man-made and natural disasters. The fact sheet highlights significant information on past catastrophes, including hurricanes, and dollar value of property damage those events produced. ISO spokespeople are available to provide analyses of catastrophe losses. AIR Worldwide Corporation (AIR), ISO's catastrophe- and weather-risk-modeling subsidiary, can also assist you in your coverage of hurricanes and other catastrophes. Using its sophisticated simulation models, AIR can estimate insured property losses in the immediate aftermath of hurricanes, major earthquakes and severe thunderstorms. AIR's scientists, engineers and catastrophe-risk experts are available to comment on the science and financial impact of extreme events. Contact Mike Gannon at (617) 954-1857;
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
. About Property Claim Services
PCS, a unit of ISO, is recognized around the world as the property/casualty industry's authority on catastrophe information services. For more than 50 years, PCS has been responsible for identifying and estimating insured property damage from catastrophes in the U.S. PCS's identification of events as catastrophes provides primary insurers and reinsurers worldwide with a way to segregate property losses that may be subject to reinsurance coverage. About ISO
ISO is a leading source of information, products and services related to property and liability risk.For a broad spectrum of commercial and personal lines of insurance, ISO provides data, analyticaland decision-support products; consulting; data processing; and technical, statistical and actuarialservices. ISO field services include on-site rating and underwriting services and the evaluationof community loss-mitigation efforts. ISO's products help customers with sales and prospecting, underwriting,rating and quoting, customer management, policy administration, product development, claims administrationand fraud detection. ISO's AIR Worldwide subsidiary provides technologies to assess and manage naturaland man-made extreme-event risk. Through its ISO Claims Services, Inc. (iiX unit) and Intellicorpsubsidiaries, ISO provides motor vehicle reports and criminal-records information and through itsAscendantOne unit delivers rating, quoting and policy-administration solutions. In the United Statesand around the world, ISO serves insurers, reinsurers, agents, brokers, self-insureds, risk managers,insurance regulators and other government agencies. INSURANCE SERVICES OFFICE, INC.
PROPERTY CLAIM SERVICES CATASTROPHE FACT SHEET A Decade of Catastrophes (1993–2002):
Number of Events and Estimated Insured Losses
(adjusted to 2002 dollars) | Year | Number of Events | Insured Losses | | 2002 | 25 | $5.9 billion | | 2001 | 20 | $28.6 billion | | 2000 | 24 | $4.8 billion | | 1999 | 27 | $9.0 billion | | 1998 | 37 | $11.1 billion | | 1997 | 25 | $2.9 billion | | 1996 | 41 | $8.4 billion | | 1995 | 34 | $9.8 billion | | 1994 | 38 | $20.5 billion | | 1993 | 36 | $6.9 billion |
ISO defines a catastrophe as a single incident or series of related incidents — man-made or wind, hail, tornadoes, flooding, wildfires, earthquakes and other natural disasters — that cause insured property losses totaling at least $25 million and affect a significant number of policyholders and insurers. Costliest Catastrophes and Estimated Insured Loss
(adjusted to 2002 dollars) | Terrorist attack (N.Y., Va. and Pa.) — Sept. 2001 | $20.7 billion | | Hurricane Andrew — Aug. 1992 | $19.9 billion | | Northridge (Calif.) earthquake — Jan. 1994 | $15.2 billion | | Hurricane Hugo — Sept. 1989 | $6.1 billion | | Hurricane Georges — Sept. 1998 | $3.3 billion | | Hurricane Betsy — Sept. 1965 | $2.9 billion | | Tropical Storm Allison — July 2001 | $2.5 billion | | Hurricane Opal — Oct. 1995 | $2.5 billion | | Oakland (Calif.) fire — Oct. 1991 | $2.2 billion | | Tornado storm — April 2001 | $2.2 billion | | Winter storm — March 1993 | $2.2 billion |
A Decade of Hurricane Losses (1993–2002):
Number of Events and Estimated Insured Losses
(adjusted to 2002 dollars) | Year | Number of Events | Insured Losses | | 2002 | 1 | $430 million | | 2001* | 0 | — | | 2000* | 0 | — | | 1999 | 5 | $2.5 billion | | 1998 | 2 | $3.7 billion | | 1997 | 1 | $67 million | | 1996 | 3 | $2.2 billion | | 1995 | 3 | $4.0 billion | | 1994* | 0 | — | | 1993 | 1 | $37.3 million |
* Hurricane damages did not meet catastrophe threshold Ten Most Intense Hurricanes, Categories 5 and 4 (1900–2002)
[measured by Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Disaster-Potential Scale] | Florida (Keys) — 1935 | Category 5 | | Camille — 1969 | Category 5 | | Andrew — 1992 | Category 5 | | Florida (Keys)/So. Texas — 1919 | Category 4 | | Florida — 1928 | Category 4 | | Donna — 1960 | Category 4 | | Texas (Galveston) — 1900 | Category 4 | | Louisiana (Grand Isle) — 1909 | Category 4 | | Louisiana (New Orleans) — 1915 | Category 4 | | Carla — 1961 | Category 4 |
Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Disaster-Potential Scale classifies hurricanes on their intensity and damage potential under five categories, with Categories 5, 4 and 3 being the most destructive. The scale does not measure insured property losses. | 