Travelers Expecting $1.7 Billion in Catastrophe Losses From LA Wildfires

Another major California insurer is reporting losses in excess of $1 billion from the Los Angeles area wildfires.

The Travelers Companies Inc. announced Tuesday it will lose an estimated $1.7 billion from last month’s wildfires, which swept through the region and destroyed tens of thousands of homes earlier this month. The L.A. wildfires could result in total losses of up to $164 billion and insured losses of up to $40 billion, according to preliminary estimates.

The New York-based company issued a preliminary estimate of catastrophe losses related to the wildfires of $1.7 billion pre-tax ($1.3 billion after-tax), which includes losses from its personal and commercial segments, including the company’s Fidelis quota share, as well as estimated assessments from the California FAIR Plan and recoveries from reinsurance.

The estimate is based on an analysis of claims already reported and projected to be reported, estimated values of properties in the affected areas, estimated damage resulting from wildfire and other perils, and other factors according to Travelers.

Preliminary data show insurers have paid out more than $4 billion for losses from the biggest two of the L.A.-area wildfires.

Claims figures from insurers released by the California Department of Insurance on Jan. 30 show that 31,210 claims have been filed for home, business, living expenses and other disaster-related needs. According to CDI, $4.2 billion in claims have been paid.

The FAIR Plan, the state’s insurer of last resort, reported it has received more than 3,200 claims as of Jan. 28 for damage caused by the Pacific Palisades Fire and more than 1,200 claims for damage caused by the Eaton Fire.

Allstate Corp. on Jan. 5 reported losses in excess of $1 billion from the fires. CEO Tom Wilson in a fourth quarter earnings call said pretax losses from the L.A. wildfires are expected to be about $1.1 billion net of reinsurance.

State Farm General, the state’s top homeowners insurer, said last week it is asking the California Department of Insurance to immediately approve interim rate increases, including 22% average for homeowners. As of the start of the month, the carrier said it had received more than 8,700 claims and has already paid more than $1 billion to customers from the wildfires.

Following State Farm, the state’s biggest homeowners insurers are Farmers Insurance Group, Liberty Mutual Insurance Companies, CSAA Insurance Group, Mercury Insurance Group, Allstate Insurance Group, Auto Club Enterprises, USAA Group and Travelers Group, according to AM Best’s latest data.

USAA paid out more than $1 billion for the L.A. wildfires. The San Antonio, Texas-based company reported last week more than 3,500 claims have been received, and is projecting it will ultimately pay out $1.8 billion in losses from the wildfires.

Chubb said the wildfires are expected to cost the insurer $1.5 billion in the first quarter.

Other companies to report large losses include RenaissanceRe, which said it expects to incur about $750 million in losses from the wildfires. It also anticipates that industrywide impacts should halt the drop in property-catastrophe reinsurance prices. Arch Capital estimates losses of between $450 million and $500 million.

The fires come after a year in which carriers began requesting rate hikes and they began pulling back from the wildfire-prone state. CalFire data show that seven of the state’s 10 most destructive wildfires have occurred in the last 10 years.

In response, California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara introduced his so-called Sustainable Insurance Strategy to increase coverage in wildfire-distressed areas of the state. Lara in December announced a catastrophe modeling and ratemaking regulation that will allow carriers to use the models as a factor in setting and getting rates.

The changes to the regulations were well received by the insurance industry, but they may do little to immediately sooth the impact from the L.A. fires, which are expected to cause property insurance carriers to raise rates, reduce coverage options, or both, in California and other at-risk areas, according to S&P.

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