Marked by hurricanes and cold waves in the United States, 2021 was the second most costly year in history for insurers in the world, Munich Re said on Monday (10), warning of extreme events more likely due to climate change.
Insurers lost $120 billion in natural disasters last year, trailing only $146 billion in damage in 2017 — another hurricane-filled year. The tally by Munich Re, the world’s largest reinsurer, is higher than a $105 billion estimate that competitor Swiss Re released last month.
The US, ravaged by dozens of tornadoes in December and Hurricane Ida and blizzards in Texas in early 2021, accounted for much of the losses, Munich Re said.
“The images of natural disasters in 2021 are disturbing. Climate research increasingly confirms that extreme weather conditions have become more likely,” said Torsten Jeworrek, member of Munich Re’s board of directors.
Nearly 10,000 people died in natural disasters, in line with previous years. Total losses, including those not covered by insurance, were US$ 280 billion (R$ 1.5 trillion), the fourth largest result on record.
Hurricane Ida, which wreaked havoc in US cities from New Orleans to New York, resulted in $36 billion in policyholder losses. The winter storm that mainly hit Texas resulted in losses of about US$ 15 billion (R$ 85 billion). Floods in Germany also cost billions.
“The 2021 disaster statistics are impressive because some of the extreme weather events are the type that are likely to become more frequent or more severe as a result of climate change,” said Ernst Rauch, head of climate and geoscientist at Munich Re.
Many scientists agree that the events in 2021 have been exacerbated by climate change and that there is more — and worse — to come, as Earth’s atmosphere continues to warm over the next decade and beyond. The costliest year on record was 2017, which saw hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria.
Other severe years were 2011, when major earthquakes hit Japan and New Zealand, and 2005, when Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. In some cases, insurers have increased policy prices given the increasing likelihood of disasters, while in some places they have stopped providing coverage.
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