Privately insured Debby losses up to $1.4B: KCC

The privately insured loss from Hurricane Debby will be close to $1.4 billion in the U.S., Karen Clark & Co. said Thursday.

The losses break out to about $845 million from wind, $130 million from storm surge and $440 million from inland flooding, KCC said in a report.

The estimate includes the privately insured damage to residential, commercial, and industrial properties and automobiles, as well as business interruption. It does not include boats, offshore properties, or NFIP losses, the report said.

Hurricane Debby made two landfalls, KCC said. The first was on August 5 as a Category 1 hurricane with 80 mph winds in Florida’s Big Bend region. Debby made landfall again on August 8 as a tropical storm with 50 mph winds in South Carolina.

Storm surge reached 6 feet in Cedar Key, Florida, and 4 feet at locations within Tampa Bay. Debby’s second landfall along the South Carolina coast led to storm surge of 1 to 2 feet. The storm’s slow forward progress allowed it to deliver significant rainfall along its path, causing inland flooding all along the East Coast, KCC said.

Also Thursday, Moody’s RMS Event Response estimated U.S. private market insured losses from Hurricane Debby will not exceed $1.5 billion.

The Moody’s RMS estimate represents insured losses associated with wind, storm surge and precipitation-induced flooding.

Losses to the National Flood Insurance Program from this event are forecast to be less than $300 million, according to Moody’s RMS.