Insured losses from Hurricane Melissa’s strike on Jamaica are estimated to be between $2.2 billion and $4.2 billion, according to data analytics firm Verisk.
The Category 5 hurricane made landfall in southwestern Jamaica last week, marking the Caribbean nation’s strongest-ever storm to directly hit its shores and the first major hurricane since 1988.
Verisk’s Extreme Event Solutions unit reported that most of the projected losses resulted from wind damage, with flooding caused by heavy rainfall also contributing significantly. Montego Bay, a major tourist destination, sustained considerable damage.
The event underscores the increasing pressure that extreme weather events, intensified by climate change, are placing on the insurance industry. Frequent and severe natural disasters are driving up claims, straining underwriting results, and forcing insurers to re-evaluate risk models and pricing strategies.
Verisk, headquartered in New Jersey, primarily serves property and casualty insurers, providing catastrophe modelling and predictive analytics to support risk assessment and policy pricing.
Insured losses from Hurricane Melissa’s recent strike on Jamaica are estimated between $2.2 billion and $4.2 billion, according to analytics firm Verisk.
The Category 5 hurricane, the strongest ever to directly hit Jamaica, made landfall in the southwest last week and is the first major hurricane to affect the island since 1988. Most projected losses stem from wind damage, with heavy rainfall and flooding also causing significant destruction, particularly in Montego Bay, a major tourist hub.
Verisk highlighted that events like Melissa are increasing pressure on the insurance industry, as frequent severe weather, intensified by climate change, drives higher claims, strains underwriting results, and forces insurers to re-evaluate risk models and pricing strategies.