Karen Clark releases convective storm model update

Catastrophe modeler Karen Clark & Co. on Monday said it has released Version 1.0 of its Severe Convective Storm Reference Model.

Losses from such storms have been trending upward, consistently exceeding $10 billion for the past several years, Boston-based Karen Clark & Co. said in a statement. In 2011 alone, insured losses exceeded $30 billion, and two individual events each caused $7 billion in losses, it added.

The multiperil KCC SCS model is licensed as part of the RiskInsight open loss modeling platform, according to the statement. Hazards of hail versus tornadoes and straight-line winds are simulated separately. Along with a catalog of over 33,000 events used for pricing and reinsurance decision-making, the model includes over 100 historical SCS events, according to the statement.

“There has been significant industry demand for a more credible and accurate SCS model,” said Karen Clark, the company’s president and CEO. “While this peril does not pose a solvency threat to most insurers, claims from severe thunderstorms eat away at earnings each year, and our clients want to make sure their rates reflect the most up-to-date science and their actual loss experience.”