Storm Conall caused €40 mil. in damage, insurers estimate

Storm Conall caused approximately 40 million euros in damage when it crossed the Netherlands on Wednesday, the Association of Insurers said in a first estimate based on historical data.

“We are seeing damage across almost the entire country and unfortunately a young woman on a bicycle also died in Lochem,” said Richard Weurding, the association’s general manager. “Cars and roofs were damaged by the strong wind.”

Several insurers reported earlier on Thursday that they had already received a few hundred damage claims, mainly damage to cars and homes from fallen trees and branches. They also received many claims for water damage.

Conall was the first “severe” storm to hit the Netherlands since Poly in the summer of 2023. Poly caused over 60 million euros in damage.

The insurers also keep track of damage caused by severe weather in the Climate Damage Monitor, working with the meteorological institute KNMI. The Climate Damate Monitor shows damage caused by extreme weather from 2007 to 2023.

So far, the most damage recorded happened in February 2022, when several “striking” storms caused over 800 million euros in damages.

The Association of Insurers is working with the KNMI on preventing storm damage. “In order to limit the damage as much as possible, it is important that a weather warning reaches the right people as quickly and effectively as possible,” Weurding said.