EQECAT Estimates Cumulative Insured Losses from Hurricane Dean in Mexico Should Be Less Than $250 Million
August 22, 2007
Oakland, California
EQECAT, Inc., the leading authority on extreme-risk modeling, Wednesday afternoon (Eastern Time) said, based on current storm data provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), cumulative insured losses from Hurricane Dean in two landfalls in Mexico will not likely exceed $250 million.
Overall, Hurricane Dean insured losses will likely be approximately $2 billion, based on the final storm track. Earlier estimates were based on more adverse storm paths and intensities forecast by the weather services. While Jamaica was significantly impacted, the storm missed Martinique, St. Lucia, the Caymans, densely populated centers on the Yucatan Peninsula and Mexico oil production areas. The majority of the loss occurred in Jamaica, which sustained significant property damage. Jamaica will also incur additional economic damage going forward due to loss of tourism while property and infrastructure damage is repaired. Hurricane Dean's intensity was the third most severe recorded in the Atlantic-Caribbean basin.
EQECAT's insured loss estimates include business interruption, as a result of the destruction of property; and demand surge, which occurs when the demand for products and services to repair damage significantly exceeds the regional supply. Thus, these products and services may have to be brought to the region quickly from distant points, resulting in additional costs for transportation, packaging and manufacture.
Excluded from EQECAT's insured loss estimates are losses related to flooding, private and commercial automobiles and similar vehicles, and marine assets, such as boats.
EQECAT, Inc. provides state-of-the-art products and services to the global property and casualty insurance, reinsurance and financial markets. EQECAT is the technical leader and innovator of catastrophe risk management models that quantify exposure to a range of natural and man-made catastrophic risks.
Through its modeling software platform, WORLDCATenterprise, EQECAT enables clients to quantify and manage the potential financial impact of natural hazards. WORLDCATenterprise includes 181 natural hazard software models for 95 countries spanning six continents. These models are based upon innovative applications of the latest science, engineering expertise, claims and exposure data and advanced mathematics.
EQECAT, a subsidiary of ABSG Consulting Inc., was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Oakland, California.
For more information, contact:
pr@eqecat.com