US cat losses 20% higher than 10-year average with Texas hardest hit

Catastrophe events in the US resulted in $13.5 billion in insured losses, 20 percent higher than the ten-year historical average (2007 to 2016) of $11.6 billion, according to a survey from Property Claims Service for the first half of 2016.

Some 39 states were affected by catastrophe events in the first half of 2016, compared to 27 for the first half of 2015 and 24 for the first half of 2014.

Texas was by the far the worst affected state in the first half of 2016, with 14 catastrophe events and an estimated $7.6 billion in industry losses.

The insured losses in Texas were up approximately 300 percent year over year, with wind and thunderstorm events in early spring leading to industry losses of $4.8 billion.

This was followed by Nebraska at $550 million in estimated industry losses from two cat events.