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»WHETHER
PRIVATE OR
BUSINESS – WE
OFFER INSURANCE
COVERAGE WORLD-
WIDE FOR NATURAL
DISASTERS.«
42 ANNUAL REPORT 2010 | WIENER STÄDTISCHE
CHARGES FROM NATURAL DISASTERS
Since the year 2000, the frequency of damage
caused by natural disasters has significantly
increased worldwide.
The more and more frequently observed
weather extremes can hardly be explained
without climate change. Over the last 30
years their number has tripled. Weather
disasters are storms like Hurricane Katrina
or Kyrill, floods as we experienced in many
parts of the world in 2010 or the heat wave
in Russia and the forest fires in Israel.
The climate changes in the last century are
probably the result of man-made greenhouse
gases. Deforestation, agriculture and
waste management also play a role. The
concentration of greenhouse gases in the
atmosphere is increasing, and it is getting
warmer.
In many parts of the world, the effects of
global warming can already be seen clearly:
snow and ice layers melt, global sea levels
rise, and glaciers retreat. According to the
current state of climate research, it is likely
that our environment will also change in the
future. It can be expected that extreme
weather events will occur more often.
Natural Hazards in 2010
The year 2010 was marked worldwide by
strong earthquake occurrences and a high
number of weather disasters. The major
losses in 2010 occurred mainly outside
Austria. Since Wiener Städtische assists
Austrian companies abroad and offers
comprehensive insurance coverage to
business customers, Wiener Städtische was
also affected by numerous major losses.
The earthquake in Chile in February 2010
had a magnitude of 8.8 Mw on the moment
magnitude scale and was the strongest
earthquake in Chile in almost 50 years.
Wiener Städtische was affected by Austrian/European
risks with interests abroad.
In May and June 2010, there was severe
flooding in Austria, the Czech Republic,
Slovakia and Poland. Wiener Städtische
processed about 2,900 individual claims
and alleviated at least the financial difficulties
of the customers.
Between 6 August 2010 and 8 August
2010 there were heavy rains in the Czech
Republic, Austria and Poland. In Austria,
about 230 reports of damage were filed.
However, in Poland, the branch office of an
Austrian customer was also affected, with
the damage incurred there accounting for
most of the claim amount.
In November 2010, Thailand was afflicted
by the heaviest floods in recent decades.
Wiener Städtische was affected by this
natural disaster through the coverage of
Austrian risks abroad.