PERILS lifts Australian hailstorms insured losses to A$1.8bn

The total insured losses from the January 2020 Australian hailstorms have reached A$1.811 billion ($1.28 billion) including both property and motor claims, according to catastrophe insurance data provider PERILS.

Motor losses accounted for 47 percent (A$849 million) of the total industry loss, while the property losses increased 44 percent (A$962 million) from the earlier loss estimate.

PERILS’ earlier loss estimates of A$670 million issued in March and April did not include the motor losses.

The latest figure is based on detailed loss data collected from the majority of the Australian insurance market.

A series of hailstorms struck the Australian states of Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory from January 19 to 21. The largest impact was experienced in Canberra which suffered from hailstones up to 6cm in size. Insurance losses during the three days were most severe in the Australian Capital Territory, accounting for 55 percent of the industry loss, followed by Victoria (25 percent), New South Wales (16 percent), and Queensland (4 percent).

Darryl Pidcock, head of PERILS Asia-Pacific, commented: “This release is of particular market relevance as it is the first time hail motor losses, split into private and commercial LOBs, are included in a postcode-level loss footprint by PERILS. This follows the Australian insurance industry’s support for the inclusion of motor, a measure which will further enhance its understanding of underlying risks and enabling improvements in modelling. This is only possible due to that support from our insurance partners and we are grateful to them for providing their data.”