The Covid-19 epidemic is not the only burden for insurers in 2020. The bill for hurricanes, forest fires and other natural disasters jumped 25% last year, to 210 billion dollars ( 171 billion euros), including 99 billion for the United States alone.
The insured amount of these disasters, which killed 8,200 people, represents 82 billion dollars, the share not covered by insurance exceeding 60%, indicates the reinsurer Munich Re.
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Six of the ten most costly claims occurred in the United States.
The hurricane season in the North Atlantic has been "
hyperactive
", notes Munich Re, with a record 30 storms, including 13 hurricanes.
Hurricane Laura, which hit Louisiana in August with winds of 240 km / h, caused $ 13 billion in losses, 77% of which were insured.
Forest fires have also raged in the United States, Colorado and California in particular.
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In Asia, the cost of disasters is $ 70 billion.
The floods that hit China during the summer monsoon caused an estimated $ 17 billion, of which only 2% of these losses were insured.
In Europe, losses amounted to 12 billion dollars, of which 3.6 billion were insured.
Heavy rains hit the Mediterranean coasts of southern France and Italy in the fall, destroying hundreds of homes as well as bridges and roads.
This table is part of a climatic context marked by average global temperatures, between January and November, "
higher by about 1.2 degrees Celsius than pre-industrial levels (1880-1900
)", recalls Munich Re. The global community set itself the goal of keeping global warming well below 2 degrees in Paris in 2015, "
it's time to act,
" concludes Torsten Jeworrek, member of the German reinsurer's management board.
