Insurers May Take $18 Billion Hit From Hurricane Ida: Industry Experts

A rainbow is seen in the background as Jody Galliano clears debris from his yard in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida in Galliano, La., on Aug. 31, 2021. Adrees Latif/Reuters

Insurers are bracing for a hit of about $18 billion from Hurricane Ida in the United States and the Caribbean, catastrophe modeling company Karen Clark & Co (KCC) said on Wednesday.

The number, closer to the lower end of the initial estimates given by insurance analysts while the storm was still raging earlier this week, is the first from one of the industry’s major risk-modeling experts.