Early estimates suggest Irene losses tame

Hurricane Irene caused between $200 million and $400 million in insured losses in the Carolinas, catastrophe modeling company EQECAT said on Sunday, suggesting the storm may have been far less severe than the insurance industry feared. The bigger question, though, is how much coverage people have for the severe flooding that struck New York and New Jersey, and whether the federal government’s flood program can handle all of the claims.