“Ylenia”, “Zeynep” and “Antonia”: In 2022 Germany had the most severe winter storms in many years. However, the amount of damage caused by storms fell sharply compared to 2021 – the year of the Ahr Valley disaster.
Last year was a below-average natural hazard year for German insurers. Storms have caused insurance losses nationwide amounting to around four billion euros. This corresponds to about a third of the damage from 2021, as reported by the General Association of the German Insurance Industry (GDV). At that time, the flood disaster in the Ahr Valley caused insurance losses of around twelve billion euros.
Worst winter storms since 2002
“In a comparison of the federal states, North Rhine-Westphalia is at the top of the statistics with a loss of around 790 million euros, followed by Bavaria with almost 700 million euros,” said the general manager of the GDV Jörg Asmussen. In terms of the number of claims, Lower Saxony was ahead with 66.8 reports per 1000 contracts.
According to the GDV, the hurricanes “Ylenia”, “Zeynep” and “Antonia” in February last year were particularly devastating. They were said to be the worst winter storms since 2002. They caused significantly more than a quarter of the total amount of damage.
elemental damage often uninsured
A large part of the damage, around 3.1 billion euros, was attributable to property insurance, for example for residential buildings or household goods. The remaining 900 million euros were paid by motor vehicle insurers. The GDV’s annual natural hazard balance sheet only includes insured damage caused by storms, hail or lightning and other natural hazards such as heavy rain and flooding. Natural hazards such as earthquakes or floods, on the other hand, are often not insured, the association said.
From the point of view of the industry, more measures to avoid insurance damage are necessary, such as a legal ban on construction in areas at risk of flooding. “The introduction of compulsory insurance against natural hazards, as is currently being discussed, does not solve the problem,” said Asmussen.