Irene losses less than once feared

Hurricane Irene caused $3 billion to $6 billion in insured losses, catastrophe modeling company AIR Worldwide said on Monday, affirming the insurance industry’s suspicion the impact was not as bad as feared. In the days leading up to Irene, some had expected a $10 billion hit, though as Irene actually made land it appeared the storm was not doing the damage it was expected to do. AIR, whose estimate covers U.S. onshore properties, develops software that insurers use to model exposure to disasters.