Harvey's Insured Losses in Texas Counted at $19 Billion
The year already had brought higher-than-normal insured auto losses due to increases in the number of collisions and escalating repair costs, after last year's nearly $5 billion in auto and homeowner hail claims.
The Insurance Council of Texas has calculated the insured losses from Hurricane Harvey at $19 billion. The organization released the figure on Sept. 15, saying that Hurricane Ike, which came ashore near Galveston on Sept. 13, 2008, had been the costliest Texas storm previously with $12 billion in insured losses. Harvey made landfall Aug. 25, 2017, as a category 3 hurricane with 130 mph winds and brought more than 50 inches of rain to parts of Houston and southeast Texas. Flooding occurred over a 200-mile-long area of Texas stretching from La Grange to the Louisiana border.
The council reported that insured windstorm and other storm-related property losses are expected to top $3 billion. In addition, an estimated 250,000 private passenger and commercial vehicles were flooded, resulting in insured losses from auto losses and commercial property that are expected to reach $4.75 billion. (These totals do not include residential property losses due to flooding or any uninsured losses.)
The year already had brought higher-than-normal insured auto losses due to increases in the number of collisions and escalating repair costs, after last year's nearly $5 billion in auto and homeowner hail claims.
"The number of uninsured homeowners who felt the full wrath of Harvey is staggering," said Mark Hanna, an ICT spokesperson. "Undoubtedly, the full economic impact from Harvey on Texas, will not be known for some time."