FOR RELEASE: March 11, 2003
FOR INFORMATION: Mary Bonelli/Mitch Wilson,
614.228.1593
After hours: Mary/614.443.0400; Mitch/614.868.0575
Ohio February winter storm losses
lower than expected
COLUMBUS–Preliminary estimates from February's snow
and ice storms that hammered 16 states from the Mid-Atlantic
to New England caused less than $20 million in insured losses
in Ohio, according to the Ohio Insurance Institute (OII).
Losses reported to-date stand at $17.5 million, significantly
less than other snowstorms to hit Ohio in the past decade.
(Click here for a list of major Ohio snowstorms
in the past decade.) The Institute expects the final
tally of insured losses and claims to be higher, although
it may not reach catastrophe levels. A catastrophe, in insurance
terms, is an event that causes more than $25 million in insured
property damage and affects multiple insurers.
29 property/casualty insurance companies reported their
loss information to the OII. Of those companies reporting
claims, totals range from a handful to about 1,300. Insured
loss estimates range from $6,000 to about $2.5 million.
Click here for a partial list of insurance
claims/loss estimates by company.
OII loss estimates include the storm system that passed
through the state over President’s Day weekend starting
on February 14 and a subsequent winter storm the following
week. According to survey results, insurance companies are
reporting at least 6,900 insured claims from the storms.
"Survey participants represent about 74% of Ohio's
homeowners and personal auto insurance markets and about
55% of the commercial line market," said OII President
Daniel J. Kelso. "We anticipate additional claims as
insurers update their figures and other companies report
in."
About 59% of the claims filed to-date pertain to homeowners
or renters insurance. The estimated homeowners losses to-date
are about $9.1 million for 4,040 claims. The storms caused
power outages, freezing pipes, and structural damage from
ice, wind, water and heavy snow accumulation.
On the auto insurance side, fewer auto claims have been
filed than normally anticipated from of a storm of this size.
About 36% of the claims, according to the OII survey, were
for damaged or totaled vehicles. Losses in the personal auto
line currently stand at just under 2,500 claims for $6 million.
Commercial losses, based on 136 claims, are currently estimated
slightly under $1 million.
"Several Ohio counties designated Level 2 and Level
3 emergencies. The fact that driving was restricted in many
parts of the state contributed to fewer crashes," said
Kelso.
The major brunt of the storm occurred during the President's
Day holiday weekend. Advanced warning from the National Weather
Service contributed to fewer auto-related claims. Schools,
some businesses, and local and state governments were closed
on Ohio's heaviest snow day, so fewer Ohioans found it necessary
to venture out. 15–20 inches of snow were reported
in some parts of the state while thick ice accumulations
were buried under several inches of snow in southern Ohio.
On March 4, Governor Bob Taft announced that the state is
seeking federal disaster assistance for 15 Ohio counties,
located primarily in the southern part of the state. The
Ohio and Federal Emergency Management Agencies and US Small
Business Administration surveyed damage in southern Ohio,
making a preliminary assessment of $17 million in disaster
related costs. These costs include snow and debris removal,
emergency loss prevention measures and public utilities repair.
The agencies found over 300 homes and businesses either damaged
or destroyed in six counties.
According to the Insurance Services Offices, Inc., (ISO)
an insurance industry catastrophe loss information group,
the February 14–18 storms affected Connecticut, Delaware,
Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, North Carolina, New Hampshire,
New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee,
Virginia, Vermont and West Virginia. US loss information
is not yet available. The February winter storms caused at
least 40–50 deaths according to various news reports.
The Insurance Information Institute reports that the 2002
winter season resulted in $265 million in insured losses.
The following
list of winter storms in the last decade caused catastrophe-level
insured losses in Ohio and elsewhere. Provided are
preliminary Ohio loss estimates (not final) obtained
through surveys conducted by the OII. US figures are
provided by Property Claim Services, a unit of ISO.
- January 1999 winters storms: Snow,
ice, freezing rain and high winds combined forces
throughout the Buckeye State in a series of January
1999 winter storms that caused over $41 million
in insured losses from at least 26,000 claims.
Losses from four storms totaled $1.8 billion from
claims in 30 states.
- Blizzard of ’96: This
dual winter storm system first hit the second week
of January 1996, followed by more snow, ice and
strong winds during the third week of January.
OII estimates that insured losses from these two
storms topped $46.2 million in the Buckeye State,
with at least 28,500 claims being filed. The combined
losses of these storms totaled $960 million from
485,000 claims in 17 states.
- Winter Freeze of ’94: Two
separate winter storm events occurred January 14–20,
1994 affecting 20 states. It was followed up by
an ice storm that hit parts of Ohio on February
8–9. OII preliminary figures found that at
least $40 million in insured losses resulted from
24,740 claims around the state. National insured
loss estimates from the January storms totaled
$825 million.
- Blizzard of March 14, 1993: The
March 11–14 storm front affected the eastern
third of the US caused $1.75 billion in insured
losses, the ninth costliest US catastrophe. States
hardest hit were Florida, North and South Carolina
and Georgia. Ohio preliminary claims were above
45,000 with insured losses of over $120 million.
|
February 2003 winter storm
loss estimates (partial list)
| Company |
No.
of Claims
|
Total
Est. Losses ($)
|
| American Family Insurance |
85
|
$186,000
|
| Buckeye Insurance Group |
40
|
81,500
|
| Cincinnati Equitable Insurance |
35
|
70,000
|
| EMC-Hamilton Mutual |
10
|
6,000
|
| Farmers Insurance Group |
135
|
366,500
|
| German Mutual Insurance Co. |
46
|
326,000
|
| Motorists Insurance Group |
274
|
540,200
|
| Nationwide Insurance |
1,125
|
2,325,000
|
| State Farm |
1,200
|
2,500,000
|
| Wayne Mutual |
62
|
135,000
|
| Western Reserve Group |
200
|
400,000
|
| TOTAL 29 COMPANIES SURVEYED (as of 3/5/03) |
6,895
|
$17,511,200
|
|
