Natural disasters caused more losses in 2021 than in the previous two years, with a significant share of claims in the United States, German reinsurance giant Munich Re explained on Monday.
Worldwide, losses last year amounted to $ 280 billion in damages, up from $ 210 billion in 2020 and $ 166 billion in 2019, this group calculated in its annual study.
Of this total, the insured amount was $ 120 billion, the highest figure since 2017, when an amount of $ 146 billion was recorded, according to Munich Re.
The year was marked by a strong proportion of claims in the United States, costing $ 145 billion in damages, more than half of the total.
Hurricane Ida (which occurred in late August in New Orleans, New Jersey, and New York) caused $ 65 billion in damage.
Added to this is the winter storm Uri that paralyzed the south of the country in February and a series of tornadoes in early December with winds of more than 300 kilometers per hour.
Worldwide, these catastrophes have caused some 10,000 deaths.
In Europe, torrential storms in July in western Germany caused damage estimated at 46 billion euros ($ 54 billion), of which 11 billion were insured.
The Cumbre Vieja eruption on the Spanish island of La Palma between September and December left 3,000 homes buried under lava and ash. Of the 850 million euros (about $ 1 billion) of estimated damages, only a small part was insured.
“The images of natural disasters in 2021 are disturbing. Climate research increasingly confirms that extreme weather has become more likely. Societies urgently need to adapt to increasing climate risks and make climate protection a priority, ”said Torsten Jeworrek, a member of the company’s Board of Directors, quoted in the study.
“Insurers meet their responsibilities by covering part of the risks and losses,” he added.
Reference-www.eleconomista.com.mx