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Bermuda underwriter expects $50 million in third-quarter disaster losses

Posted On: Oct. 16, 2015 12:00 AM CST

Aspen Insurance Holdings Ltd. said it expects to sustain about $50 million in total pretax losses related to the Aug. 12 explosion in Tianjin, China, and natural disasters in the third quarter of this year.

The total estimated losses primarily affect the company's reinsurance segment, the Hamilton, Bermuda-based underwriter said Thursday in a statement.

Aspen said approximately $30 million of the total pretax losses, net of reinsurance and reinstatement premiums, relate to the explosion in Tianjin.

It also estimates pretax losses of up to $20 million, net of reinsurance and reinstatement premiums, related to natural catastrophes in the third quarter. Within those estimated natural catastrophe losses, the largest events were wildfires in Washington state and an earthquake in Chile.

“In the absence of significant client loss reporting in respect of both the Tianjin explosion and the natural catastrophes, we have based our estimates primarily on market information and exposure analysis, among other factors,” said Aspen in the statement. “Due to the complexity of the events and the uncertainty in its assumptions, Aspen's actual ultimate loss may vary materially from these estimates.”