Francine insured losses expected to be in the low billions

Hurricane Francine is expected to cause insured losses in the low billions, according to early estimates. 

Aon's weekly natural catastrophe update said it expected that total economic and insured losses could reach into the lower billions of dollars, but noted that total losses may continue to increase as heavy rainfall from the remains of the system remnants were expected to cause heavy rain and flooding in the area.

A CoreLogic estimate said “losses from Hurricane Francine are expected to be manageable for primary carriers,” because wind damage was limited by the sparsely populated coastal region with a high degree of resilience.

It added: “The parishes of St Mary, Terrebonne, Lafourche, and Ascencion are expected to be the hardest hit by wind and storm surge flooding.

"Soon after landfall, Francine merged with a nearby frontal system and became a post-tropical low by September 12. As of this writing, the remnants of Francine remain over the southeast US where an atmospheric blocking pattern will likely prevent the system from moving much over the next few days. This may potentially lead to a multi-day rainfall event over the region, with states such as Alabama, Tennessee, and Georgia especially at risk for flash flooding."

Aon said Francine was similar to Hurricane Zeta in October 2021, which made landfall in the same area of southeast Louisiana and caused over $5 billion in economic losses and over $3 billion in insured losses.

"Given the wind and flooding damage seen across primarily southeast Louisiana, total economic and insured losses may reach into the lower billions," Aon said. "Total losses may continue to increase as heavy rainfall from the system’s remnants may generate flooding impacts across the southeast US in the coming days."

Aon also reported that Typhoon Yagi, which has caused 140 deaths across Southeast Asia and southern China this week, is expected to cause billions of dollars in economic damage, becoming one of the costliest typhoon events since 2000.  

However, insurance claims are expected to be much lower. As of September 8, property insurance companies in China received more than 47,000 claims, accounting for compensation of about $197 million.

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