Thursday, September 11th, 2003 — U.S. property and casualty insurers are expected to pay policyholders an estimated $4.9 billion for insured property loss claims from four catastrophic events in the second quarter of this year, according to Property Claim Services. That figure represents the second-highest second quarter in losses in the last 10 years.
The spike in second-quarter losses was caused by severe thunderstorms and tornadoes that struck 18 states in early May, causing $3.13 billion in property damages. Insurers received more than 429,000 claims from auto, residential, and commercial policyholders affected by hail, wind, flooding, and more than 400 tornadoes, PCS data showed.