UK insurers are breathing a sigh of relief after the calming of Hurricane Dean which ripped through Jamaica and Mexico amassing about $1.5bn in insured losses.
Hurricane Dean was a Category 4 when it swept through Jamaica last weekend and Mexico earlier this week, however, it stayed mainly offshore and in sparsely populated areas, bypassing stretches with high exposure.
Milan Simic, managing director of AIR Worldwide Corporation, said nerves were calmed once it was clear the worst of the storm was over.
He said: “The nervousness would have diminished as soon as it was clear the hurricane wouldn’t affect the Gulf of Mexico. We will see some trickling of losses that will find its way into the London market but in the grand-scheme it’s likely to be relatively negligent.”
Jon Foley, senior underwriter for property at ascot Underwriting, a Lloyd’s insurer, said the company had kept a close eye on Hurricane Dean and losses would have been much more significant for London underwriters had the hurricane veered just 100 miles further north.
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