The amount of money that insurers expect to pay for the 2020 hurricanes continues to grow, albeit more slowly, as Louisiana gets further away from last year’s historic storm season.
Insurance companies have now reported $10 billion for claims in Louisiana from hurricanes Laura, Delta and Zeta through June 30, according to the latest round of information from insurers quantifying paid and reserved-to-pay losses for those hurricanes.
Policyholders have filed 316,879 claims of all types from the three storms through the second quarter of this year. Of those, 205,554 claims, or 65 percent, were closed with payment as of June 30, garnering $7.8 billion in payments for damage caused by the three hurricanes. Insurers have reserved an additional $2.2 billion to pay on those claims.
“As the amounts being paid out due to the devastating 2020 storm season continue to grow, I encourage policyholders to still file supplemental claims if they find additional damage or increased costs after their original claim amount was paid,” Commissioner of Insurance Jim Donelon said.
Last fall, the Louisiana Department of Insurance (LDI) issued a data call requiring all property and casualty insurers, including surplus lines insurers, to submit until October 2021 their claims data relative to damage in Louisiana caused by hurricanes Laura, Delta and Zeta. The figures represent insurance claims from both personal and commercial insurance.
These payments do not include claims or payments from the National Flood Insurance Program, which is not regulated by the Louisiana Department of Insurance. The figures also do not include uninsured losses and what people paid out of pocket to cover the deductibles on their insurance policies. That being the case, the true cost of the three storms is much higher.
The 2020 storm season was the most active ever in Louisiana, with three hurricanes plus tropical storms Cristobal and Marco striking the state. The 2020 storm season was also the second most expensive for Louisiana behind the 2005 storm season. Hurricane Laura has displaced Hurricane Rita in 2005 as the second most costly storm in Louisiana history.
Policyholders have filed 175,160 claims from Hurricane Laura, which struck southwest Louisiana on Aug. 27 with the strongest winds accompanying a hurricane in our state in over 150 years. As of June 30, insurers had closed 86 percent of the claims from Hurricane Laura, 68 percent of which were closed with payment. Total paid losses plus reserves on reported claims for Hurricane Laura as of the end of June were $8.6 billion, accounting for the vast majority of damage from the historic 2020 hurricane season in Louisiana.
Companies reported losses for Hurricane Laura in every one of Louisiana’s 64 parishes, according to the data on LDI’s website. Of the $8.6 billion in losses paid and reserved, $6.5 billion, or 75.5 percent, was in Calcasieu Parish; $294.8 million was in Beauregard Parish; $238.2 was in Cameron Parish; $205.5 million was in Rapides Parish; $106.0 million in Jefferson Davis Parish; $115.4 million in Allen Parish; $102.9 million in Vernon Parish. Those parishes accounted for nearly 90 percent of the losses and reserves. The parish is unknown for nearly $500 million in losses.
Residential property accounted for $4.1 billion, or 47.1 percent, of the paid losses plus reserves for Laura. Commercial property accounted for $3.6 billion, or 41.9 percent, of Laura losses plus reserves. Business interruption paid losses plus reserves amounted to $347.1 million, or 4.0 percent of the total; commercial auto was $11.8 million, or less than one percent; all other lines of business $412.9 million, or 4.8 percent. Personal auto was $134.7 million, or 1.6 percent. Paid losses plus reserves for private flood losses amounted to $3.7 million.
At 29 percent, private flood had the lowest percentage of reported claims closed with payment, while personal auto had the highest percent (87 percent) of reported claims closed with payment.
Paid losses plus reserves for Laura were split almost evenly between personal and commercial lines of business, with roughly $4.2 billion for personal lines and $4.4 billion for commercial lines.
Policyholders have filed 86,043 claims from Hurricane Delta, which made landfall in Southwest Louisiana on Oct. 9 as a Category 2 storm. At the end of June, insurers had closed 91 percent of all Delta claims, and 62 percent of those claims were closed with payment. Insurers have paid or reserved $869.8 million to cover losses from reported claims for Hurricane Delta as of June 30.
As was the case with Laura, Delta also caused losses in every one of Louisiana’s 64 parishes, with reported losses plus reserves in Calcasieu Parish standing at $276.7 million, or 31.8 percent of the total. Lafayette Parish had $150.8 million, or 17.3 percent of the total; Vermilion Parish, $54.7 million; Acadia Parish, $51.5 million; St. Landry Parish, $40.1 million, and East Baton Rouge Parish, $34.4 million.
Residential property losses accounted for $566.6 million, or 65.1 percent, in losses plus reserves from Hurricane Delta. Commercial property losses plus reserves accounted for $222.4 million, or 25.6 percent of the total. Together, residential property and commercial property were 90.7 percent of the Delta losses plus reserves. Delta losses plus reserves for business interruption were $9.3 million, or 1.1 percent or the total.
Policyholders have filed 55,676 claims from Hurricane Zeta, which made landfall in Terrebonne Parish on Oct. 28 and traveled through the New Orleans area as a Category 3 storm. As of June 30, insurers had closed 93 percent of reported Zeta claims, and 59 percent of those claims were closed with payment. Total paid losses plus reserves on reported claims were $600.7 million for Hurricane Zeta as of June 30.
Losses were reported for Hurricane Zeta in 62 Louisiana parishes. There were no losses reported in East Carroll and Red River parishes. This time Jefferson and Orleans Parishes in southeast Louisiana were hardest hit. Insurance companies reported $180.4 million in losses plus reserves in Orleans Parish and $178.8 million in Jefferson Parish. Together, the two parishes accounted for 59.8 percent of the losses plus reserves for Zeta. Losses plus reserves in St. Bernard Parish were $60.2 million; $49.5 million in St. Tammany Parish, and $39.6 million in Lafourche Parish. Losses plus reserves in these three parishes were another 24.9 percent of the total.
Even though Zeta made landfall in Terrebonne Parish, losses plus reserves accounted for less than 1.5 percent of the total, standing at $8.7 million.
Zeta losses plus reserves for residential property amounted to $284.2 million. Zeta losses plus reserves for commercial property amounted to $262.1 million. Together residential property and commercial property were 91.0 percent of the total losses plus reserves.
Data for the 2020 hurricanes through June 30 can be found at www.ldi.la.gov/datacallresults.
Recent Comments