Global Catastrophes
- Insured losses from natural catastrophes totaled $130 billion, 76 percent above the 21st century average, and 18 percent higher than 2020, according to the2021 Weather, Climate and Catastrophe Insightreport from Aon.
- Hurricane Ida was the largest insured loss event in 2021 and the fourth costliest hurricane on record with $36 billion in insured losses.
- There were 20 billion-dollar insured loss events in 2021, the fourth highest on record. Insured losses of $17 billion from winter weather, was the costliest on record for this peril.
- The $13 billion insured losses from European floods was the costliest disaster on record for the continent. Aon noted that roughly 38 percent of global economic losses were covered by insurance, translating to a protection gap of 62 percent.
- Natural catastrophes in 2021 resulted in a total global economic loss of $270 billion, according to Swiss Re’ssigma report. Of those global economic losses, only $111 billion were actually insured. (Aon’s and Swiss Re’s figures differ because of different collection methods and criteria for classifying events).
- According to the Swiss Re sigma report, man-made disasters totaled $10 billion in 2021, of which $8 billion were insured.
- Marsh publishes a biennial report on the 100 largest losses in the hydrocarbon industry which summarizes the largest property damage losses from the hydrocarbon extraction, transport, and processing industry between 1974 and 2021.
World Natural Disaster Events Ranked by Number Of Insured Losses, 2023 (1)
| Rank | Peril | Insured loss (US$ billions) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Severe Convective Storm | $70 |
| 2 | Flooding | 13 |
| 3 | Drought | 10 |
| 4 | Earthquake | 7 |
| 5 | Tropical Cyclone | 6 |
| 6 | Wildfire | 5 |
| 7 | Winter Weather | 4 |
| 8 | European Windstorm | 4 |
| 9 | Other | 0 |
| Total | $118 (2) |
(1) Natural disasters that cause at least US$25 million in insured losses; or 10 deaths; or 50 people injured; or 2,000 filed claims or homes and structures damaged. As of January 2024.
(2) Chart total and amount cited in text may be different due to rounding by the source, Aon
Note: Loss data shown here may differ from figures shown elsewhere for the same event due to differences in the date of publication, the geographical area covered and other criteria used by organizations collecting the data.
Source: Aon.
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Top 10 Costliest World Natural Disasters By Insured Losses, 1900-2023 (1)
(2023 US$ billions)
| Rank | Date | Country/region | Event | Insured loss (2) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aug. 2005 | U.S. | Hurricane Katrina | $102 |
| 2 | Sept. 2022 | U.S., Cuba | Hurricane Ian | 56 |
| 3 | Mar. 11, 2011 | Japan | 2011 Tohoku Earthquake/Tsunami | 48 |
| 4 | Sep. 2017 | U.S., Caribbean | Hurricane Irma | 42 |
| 5 | Aug.-Sep. 2021 | U.S., Caribbean | Hurricane Ida | 41 |
| 6 | Oct. 2012 | U.S. | Hurricane Sandy | 40 |
| 7 | Aug. 2017 | U.S. | Hurricane Harvey | 38 |
| 8 | Sep. 2017 | U.S., Caribbean | Hurricane Maria | 37 |
| 9 | Aug. 1992 | U.S., Bahamas | Hurricane Andrew | 35 |
| 10 | Jan. 17, 1994 | U.S. | Northridge Earthquake | 32 |
(1) Natural disasters that cause at least US$25 million in insured losses; or 10 deaths; or 50 people injured; or 2,000 filed claims or homes and structures damaged. Losses for hurricanes in the United States include losses for the National Flood Insurance Program. As of January 2024.
(2) Adjusted for inflation by Aon using the U.S. Consumer Price Index.
Note: Loss data shown here may differ from figures shown elsewhere for the same event due to differences in the date of publication, the geographical area covered and other criteria used by organizations collecting the data.
Source: Aon.
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Top 10 Deadliest World Natural Catastrophes, 2023 (1)
| Rank | Date | Country | Event | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Feb. 6-20 | Turkey and Syria | Turkey and Syria Earthquakes | 59,272 |
| 2 | Aug. 13-27 | Europe | Heatwave | 8,339 |
| 3 | Jul. 10-30 | Southern and Southeastern Europe | Cerberus Heatwave | 5,949 |
| 4 | Sep. 4-12 | Greece, Bulgaria, Libya, Turkey | Storm Daniel | 4,730 |
| 5 | Sep. 8 | Morocco | High Atlas Earthquake | 2,946 |
| 6 | Apr. 1-Dec. 31 | India | India Seasonal Floods | 2,653 |
| 7 | Oct. 7-15 | Afghanistan | Western Afghanistan Earthquakes | 1,480 |
| 8 | Feb. 20-Mar. 15 | Southern Africa | Cyclone Freddy | 1,434 |
| 9 | Sep. 3-8 | Western Europe | Heatwave | 1,306 |
| 10 | May 2-5 | Democratic Republic of the Congo | Eastern DRC Flooding | 470 |
| All other events | ~6,400 | |||
| Total | ~95,000 |
(1) Natural disasters that cause at least 10 deaths. As of January 2024.
~ =Approximately.
Source: Aon.
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Top 10 Deadliest World Natural Catastrophes, 1950-2023 (1)
| Rank | Date | Country/region | Event | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nov. 12, 1970 | Bangladesh | Cyclone Bhola | 300,000 |
| 2 | Jul. 27, 1976 | China | Tangshan earthquake | 242,769 |
| 3 | Jul. 30, 1975 | Taiwan, China | Super Typhoon Nina | 230,029 |
| 4 | Dec. 26, 2004 | Indian Ocean Basin | Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami | 226,408 |
| 5 | Jan. 12, 2010 | Haiti | Port-au-Prince earthquake | 160,000 |
| 6 | Apr. 1991 | Bangladesh | Cyclone Gorky | 139,000 |
| 7 | May 2008 | Myanmar | Cyclone Nargis | 138,366 |
| 8 | Aug. 1971 | Vietnam | Vietnam floods | 100,000 |
| 9 | Oct. 8, 2005 | Pakistan | Kashmir earthquake | 88,000 |
| 10 | May 12, 2008 | China | Sichuan earthquake | 87,652 |
(1) Natural disasters that cause at least 10 deaths. Does not include drought or heatwave events. As of January 2024.
Source: Aon.
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Top 10 Costliest Global Tropical Cyclones by Insured Losses, 1900-2023 (1)
(2023 US$ billions)
| Insured loss | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Date | Country/region | Event | Dollars when occurred | In 2023 dollars (2) |
| 1 | Aug. 2005 | U.S. | Hurricane Katrina | $65 | $102 |
| 2 | Sep. 2022 | U.S., Cuba | Hurricane Ian | 54 | 56 |
| 3 | Sep. 2017 | U.S., Caribbean | Hurricane Irma | 33 | 42 |
| 4 | Aug. 2021 | U.S., Caribbean | Hurricane Ida | 36 | 41 |
| 5 | Oct. 2012 | U.S., Caribbean, Canada | Hurricane Sandy | 30 | 40 |
| 6 | Aug. 2017 | U.S. | Hurricane Harvey | 30 | 38 |
| 7 | Sep. 2017 | U.S., Caribbean | Hurricane Maria | 30 | 37 |
| 8 | Aug. 1992 | U.S., Caribbean | Hurricane Andrew | 16 | 35 |
| 9 | Sep. 2008 | U.S., Caribbean | Hurricane Ike | 18 | 26 |
| 10 | Oct. 2005 | U.S., Caribbean | Hurricane Wilma | 13 | 19 |
(1) Includes losses sustained by private insurers and government-sponsored programs. Subject to change as loss estimates are further developed. As of January 2024.
(2) Adjusted for inflation by Aon using the U.S. consumer price index.
Note: Loss data shown here may differ from figures shown elsewhere for the same event due to differences in the date of publication, the geographical area covered and other criteria used by organizations collecting the data.
Source: Aon.
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Top 10 Costliest Global Severe Convective Storms by Insured Losses, 1900-2023 (1)
(2023 US$ billions)
| Insured loss | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Date | Country/region | Event | Dollars when occurred | In 2023 dollars (2) |
| 1 | Aug. 2020 | U.S. | Severe convective storm (includes Midwest Derecho) | $9.2 | $10.9 |
| 2 | Apr. 2011 | U.S. | 2011 Super Outbreak | 7.6 | 10.3 |
| 3 | May 2011 | U.S. | Joplin Tornado/Severe convective storm | 7.0 | 9.5 |
| 4 | May 2003 | U.S. | Severe convective storm | 3.3 | 5.5 |
| 5 | Jul. 2013 | Europe | Storm Andreas | 3.8 | 5.0 |
| 6 | Mar. 2023 | U.S. | Severe convective storm | 4.9 | 5.0 |
| 7 | Mar. - Apr. 2023 | U.S., Canada | Tornado Outbreak | 4.3 | 4.4 |
| 8 | May 2019 | U.S. | Severe convective storm | 3.7 | 4.4 |
| 9 | Jun. 2023 | U.S. | Severe convective storm | 4.3 | 4.3 |
| 10 | Apr. 2016 | U.S. | San Antonio Hailstorm | 3.2 | 4.1 |
(1) Includes severe convective storms such as thunderstorms, tornadoes and hailstorms, straight-line winds and flooding that could occur with these storms. Includes losses sustained by private insurers and government-sponsored programs. Subject to change as loss estimates are further developed. As of January 2024.
(2) Adjusted for inflation by Aon using the U.S. consumer price index.
Note: Loss data shown here may differ from figures shown elsewhere for the same event due to differences in the date of publication, the geographical area covered and other criteria used by organizations collecting the data.
Source: Aon.
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Top 10 Costliest Global Wildfires by Insured Losses, 1900-2023 (1)
(2023 US$ billions)
| Insured loss | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Date | Country | Event | Dollars when occurred | In 2023 dollars (2) |
| 1 | Nov. 2018 | U.S. | Camp Fire | $10.0 | $12.2 |
| 2 | Oct. 2017 | U.S. | Tubbs Fire | 8.7 | 10.9 |
| 3 | Nov. 2018 | U.S. | Woolsey Fire | 4.2 | 5.1 |
| 4 | Oct. 1991 | U.S. | Oakland (Tunnel) Fire | 1.7 | 3.8 |
| 5 | Oct. 2017 | U.S. | Atlas Fire | 3.0 | 3.7 |
| 6 | May 2016 | Canada | Horse Creek Fire | 2.9 | 3.7 |
| 7 | Aug. 2023 | U.S. | Maui / Hawaii Fire | 3.0 | 3.5 |
| 8 | Sep.-Oct. 2020 | U.S. | Glass Fire | 3.0 | 3.5 |
| 9 | Aug.-Sep. 2020 | U.S. | CZU Lightning Complex Fire | 2.5 | 3.0 |
| 10 | Dec. 2017 | U.S. | Thomas Fire | 2.3 | 2.8 |
(1) Individual wildfires. Includes losses sustained by private insurers and government-sponsored programs. Subject to change as loss estimates are further developed. As of January 2024.
(2) Adjusted for inflation by Aon using the U.S. consumer price index.
Note: Loss data shown here may differ from figures shown elsewhere for the same event due to differences in the date of publication, the geographical area covered and other criteria used by organizations collecting the data.
Source: Aon.
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Nuclear incidents
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) rates the severity of nuclear incidents on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale (INES) from one (indicating an anomaly) to seven (indicating a major event). The scale considers an event’s impact based on three criteria: its effect on people and the environment; whether it caused unsafe levels of radiation in a facility; and if preventive measures did not function as intended. Scales six and seven designate full meltdowns, where the nuclear fuel reactor core overheats and melts. Partial meltdowns, in which the fuel is damaged, are rated four or five.
Selected Examples of Historic Nuclear Events, as Classified by the INES Scale (1)
| Level | INES description | Example | Location | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anomaly | Fast stop of the main circulation pumps and simultaneous loss of their fly wheel systems during reactor scram | Olkiluoto Nuclear Power Plant, Finland | 2008 |
| Exposure of two workers in the nuclear power plant beyond the dose constraints | Rajasthan Nuclear Power Plant, India | 2012 | ||
| 2 | Incident | Reactor trip due to high pressure in the reactor pressure vessel | Laguna Verde Nuclear Power Plant, Mexico | 2011 |
| Overexposure of a practitioner in interventional radiology exceeding the annual limit | Paris, France | 2013 | ||
| 3 | Serious incident | Release of iodine 131 into the environment from the radioelements production facility | Fleurus, Belgium | 2008 |
| Severe overexposure of a radiographer | Lima, Peru | 2012 | ||
| 4 | Accident with local consequences | Radioactive material in scrap metal facility resulted in acute exposure of scrap dealer | New Delhi, India | 2010 |
| Overexposure of four workers at an irradiation facility | Stamboliysky, Bulgaria | 2011 | ||
| 5 | Accident with wider consequences | Severe damage to the reactor core | Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Plant, USA | 1979 |
| Four people died after being overexposed from an abandoned and ruptured high activity source | Goiania, Brazil | 1987 | ||
| 6 | Serious accident | Significant release of radioactive material to the environment after the explosion of a high activity waste tank | Kyshtym, Russian Federation | 1957 |
| 7 | Major accident | Significant release of radioactive material to the environment resulting in widespread health and environmental effects | Chernobyl, Ukraine | 1986 |
| Significant release of radioactive material to the environment resulting in widespread environmental effects | f*ckushima, Japan | 2011 |
(1) International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale.
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency. INES Flyer.
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Insurance Catastrophe Loss Review: Oil Spills: View PowerPoint Presentation slides.
