According to Extreme Event Solutions at Verisk, economic losses for the earthquakes in Turkey will exceed $20bn and industry insured losses will exceed $1bn.
Verisk offers a range of analytic solutions to help insurers and reinsurers make more informed decisions about risk, streamline workflows, and improve profitable growth.
These solutions include robust extreme event models and underwriting analytics for millions of commercial and residential properties around the world.
Verisk’s estimates for the Turkey disaster are based on impacts of both M7 + earthquakes that occurred on February 6, 2023. Verisk’s result suggest that the initial shock is the driver of most of the insured losses.
According to Verisk, Turkey has a long history of building codes and regulations that have been developed to ensure the safety and performance of buildings against earthquakes. Current codes reflect the latest advancements in building technology and seismic design practices almost in parallel with changes in the US seismic code.
However, the seismic performance of buildings in Turkey during earthquakes has been mixed. Buildings complied with codes have performed relatively well, while many others have experienced significant damage and collapse during earthquakes.
Bill Churney, president of extreme event solutions, Verisk, said, “These devasting earthquakes caused not only extensive physical damage, but also a tragic loss of life in Turkey and Syria.
“The sizable difference between insured and economic losses—the protection gap—represents the cost of catastrophes to society, much of which is ultimately borne by governments. Increasing insurance penetration can ease much of the burden. There are solutions available that can enhance global resilience efforts including, emergency management, hazard mitigation, public disaster financing, risk pooling, and other government-led risk- and loss-mitigation initiatives.”
In October 2022, Verisk partnered with Vexcel Data Program, the world’s largest aerial imagery programme, to help insurers accelerate their response to the widespread property damage caused by Hurricane Ian.
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