INSURANCE INFORMATION INSTITUTE
New York Press Office: (212) 346-5500; media@iii.org
NEW YORK, August 23, 2011
— While the path of Hurricane Irene is uncertain this week, one possible target is the Carolinas, which incurred historic damage from Hurricane Hugo in 1989.
Insurance companies paid nearly $4.2 billion (more than $6.7 billion in 2010 dollars) in claims for property damage caused by the storm, making it the most costly catastrophe in the history of insurance at the time, according to the
Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.).
Hurricane Hugo, which made landfall near Charleston, S.C., heralded the next two decades of record catastrophic losses for the insurance industry beginning with the $15.5 billion in insured losses from Hurricane Andrew in 1992 ($22.7 billion in 2010 dollars) and culminating in the $41.1 billion in insurance claim payouts ($45.8 billion in 2010 dollars) from Hurricane Katrina in 2005—which remains the most costly natural disaster to date in terms of insurance claims.
“In the 22-year period since Hurricane Hugo, insurance companies have paid out nearly $400 billion in property damage claims to help people recover from hurricanes, tornadoes and other catastrophes,” said Dr. Robert Hartwig, I.I.I. president and an economist. “The combination of population growth in coastal areas and a period of more frequent and severe storms increases the likelihood of even more catastrophic damage in the future.”
Dr. Hartwig added that in spite of the high level of losses from recent disasters, the industry remains financially strong.
Top 10 Costliest Hurricanes In The United States (1)
|
|
|
Estimated insured loss |
Rank |
Year |
Hurricane |
Dollars when occurred |
In 2024 dollars (2) |
1 |
2005 |
Hurricane Katrina |
$65,000 |
$104,471 |
2 |
2022 |
Hurricane Ian |
54,000 |
57,231 |
3 |
2021 |
Hurricane Ida |
36,000 |
41,540 |
4 |
2012 |
Hurricane Sandy |
30,000 |
40,939 |
5 |
2017 |
Hurricane Harvey |
30,000 |
38,571 |
6 |
2017 |
Hurricane Irma |
30,050 |
38,432 |
7 |
2017 |
Hurricane Maria |
29,511 |
37,743 |
8 |
1992 |
Hurricane Andrew |
16,000 |
35,845 |
9 |
2008 |
Hurricane Ike |
18,200 |
26,259 |
10 |
2024 |
Hurricane Milton |
20,000 |
20,000 |
|
(1) Includes Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and losses sustained by private insurers and government-sponsored programs such as the National Flood Insurance Program. Subject to change as loss estimates are further developed. As of January 2025.
(2) Adjusted for inflation by Aon using the U.S. Consumer Price Index.
Source: Aon.
View Archived Tables
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