CATASTROPHIC EVENTS
The biggest news in 2021 related to multifamily insurance was undoubtedly the collapse of the Champlain Towers condominiums in Surfside, Florida. While litigation is ongoing (and will likely be for quite some time), this situation certainly made insurers wary of unlikely but possible scenarios that could affect coastal properties. There were surely many missteps and probable continued negligence that factored into this tragedy. So, while we all hope this was an isolated incident, this tragedy has put insurers on heightened alert when
dealing with coastal properties - especially older high- rises. Certain areas of the country are more susceptible to particular catastrophic events than others, but the spread of catastrophic events is evident throughout the entire country. Unfortunately, it cannot be said that any region is less susceptible to facing catastrophic losses than others – it is the type of catastrophe that varies. In 2021 alone, there were 18 separate catastrophic events that reached the billion-dollar threshold, as seen below.
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) U.S. Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters (2021). https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/billions/, DOI: 10.25921/stkw-7w73)
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