Insurers in Central and Eastern Europe and Italy are facing estimated losses of €1.886 bn from Storm Boris, which brought devastating floods to the regions, according to Perils.
Storm Boris swept through Central Europe, leading to fatalities, massive property destruction, and severe economic losses. The storm’s aftermath highlights the ongoing need for robust disaster readiness and improved infrastructure to mitigate future damages.
This large-scale European flood event caused extensive damage over a considerable area. However, the combination of early flood warnings and active flood management before and during the event, coupled with other loss prevention measures implemented since other major floods in Europe, including in 1997, 2002 and 2013, helped to avoid an even worse catastrophe.
Christoph Oehy, CEO at Perils
Roughly 95% of industry losses were borne by insurers in Austria, the Czech Republic, and Poland, followed by Italy and Slovakia, according to Perils. Hungary and Romania experienced comparatively minor impacts.
In mid-September 2024, Storm Boris led to catastrophic flooding in Central Europe, resulting in at least 27 deaths. Poland reported nine fatalities and over 6,500 evacuations, with more than 11,500 homes damaged.
Insurers faced losses of €2 bn to €3 bn from flooding after Storm Boris hit Austria, Poland, and the Czech Republic last month, according to estimates from Verisk.
Some of the most affected areas were along the Poland-Czech Republic border. In Poland, over 6,000 agricultural, commercial, and 700 public-use buildings were damaged or submerged.
Additionally, more than 11,500 residential buildings were affected. Verisk noted that most commercial risks in Poland are insured, but flood coverage for homes and automobiles remains limited.
The Czech Republic faced extensive destruction, including power outages affecting 250,000 households and widespread evacuations. Austria reported five fatalities, including a firefighter, and saw collapsed bridges and submerged vehicles.
Romania experienced seven deaths, thousands of damaged homes, and lost infrastructure like bridges. Slovakia, Hungary, and Germany also saw rising river levels, prompting evacuations and emergency responses.
The economic toll of Storm Boris is immense. In Austria, damages reached into the billions of euros. Poland’s infrastructure and housing sectors face high repair costs, with the government seeking EU recovery assistance.
Lloyd’s of London insurers Beazley and Lancashire reported that recent storms, including Boris, could result in combined losses of up to $315 mn. Beazley projected net losses of $125 mn to $175 mn, while Lancashire estimated $110 mn to $140 mn.
The Danube, Elbe, Oder, and Vistula rivers flooded after heavy rainfall from Boris. The worst-hit areas included eastern Austria, central and eastern Czechia, and southwestern Poland.
The storm then moved into Italy, causing renewed flooding in Emilia-Romagna and Marche, regions already heavily affected in May 2023.
Guy Carpenter described the event as the most significant flood since 2010, though it did not reach the severity of the 1997, 2002, or 2010 floods.
Modern infrastructure, dams, and flood barriers played a crucial role in reducing damage. Scientific advancements and proactive measures have strengthened regional protection against extreme weather.
Storm Boris’s torrential rains and flooding likely caused more than €1.5 bn in insured losses in Central Europe, according to an Aon report. Reinsurers anticipate limited impact from Storm Boris flooding. Gallagher Re estimated insured losses will amount to between €2 bn and €3 bn.
Storm Boris could give rise to some of the worst flood losses for decades in central and eastern Europe for insurers like PZU, VIG, UNIQA, Generali and Allianz, according to a report from Bloomberg Intelligence (BI).
