Francine insured losses close to $1.5bn: KCC

Insured losses from Hurricane Francine will be close to $1.5bn, according to a report from catastrophe modeler Karen Clark & Co (KCC).

The estimate includes privately insured damage to residential, commercial, and industrial properties and automobiles, as well as business interruption.

It does not include boats, offshore properties or National Flood Insurance Program losses.

The storm became Hurricane Francine late on 10 September and continued to strengthen, making landfall as a Category 2 hurricane with 100-mph maximum sustained winds around 5:30pm CDT on 11 September.

Francine is the sixth hurricane to make landfall in Louisiana in the last five years.

It weakened to a tropical storm by 10pm CDT and became a tropical depression on the morning of 12 September while moving northward into Mississippi, according to KCC.

In a separate report on Monday, Moody’s Investors Service said it expects primary insurers will retain most of the losses from Hurricane Francine.

“US primary insurers have retained a higher proportion of catastrophe risk in recent years as reinsurers have raised pricing and attachment points and pulled back from providing aggregate reinsurance covers,” Moody’s said.

The top three commercial property insurers in Louisiana in 2023 were Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance, Berkshire Hathaway and Chubb, according to Moody’s data.

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