When Hurricane Ian barreled into Florida in September, bringing extreme winds and torrential rains, it caused between $50 billion and $65 billion in insured damages. That makes it not only this year’s costliest natural disaster but the second-costliest insured loss ever after 2005’s Hurricane Katrina, according to a report from the Swiss Re Institute, the research arm of the reinsurance giant.
The annual analysis, which looks at losses from natural catastrophes such as floods, hurricanes and wildfires, estimates the total economic losses around the world will reach $260 billion in 2022. That’s down 11% from last year, but still well above the 10-year average of $207 billion. Only a portion of the 2022 damage was insured, but the insured losses follow a similar trend. They are expected to come to $115 billion this year, 6% below last year but higher than the 10-year average of $81 billion.
