Less Weather Destruction on Cars - Still Millions in Damage Costs
Decrease in insured storm-damaged vehicles, yet substantial financial losses persist - Minimized vehicle damage during storms, yet millions of cars suffer consequences
A drop in total damage: In 2024, car insurance providers in Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland handled significantly fewer cases of weather-related car damage when compared to the previous year, according to the GDV annual report.
Rhineland-Palatinate saw approximately 6,500 vehicles suffer from weather damage last year, amounting to roughly €18 million in damages. Saarland, on the other hand, reported around 1,500 damaged vehicles due to weather events, resulting in around €5 million in total damages.
Compared to 2023, the numbers saw a significant decrease: Car owners in Rhineland-Palatinate reported weather damage to 29,000 vehicles, with damages totaling €107 million. Saarland's weather events caused damage to 3,000 vehicles, amounting to €9 million.
The GDV issues a warning against underestimating the growing risk of natural hazards.
Nationwide, the numbers for 2024 were around 340,000 cases and €1.3 billion in damage—roughly in line with the long-term average. However, this doesn't necessarily mean that the threat from natural disasters has lessened. Climate change is, in fact, exacerbating the risk of such events.
Weather-related Car Damage
- Vehicles
- Million in Damages
- Rhineland-Palatinate
- Saarland
- Cars
- Weather Events
- GDV
- Mainz
- Saarbrücken
- Dent
- Lightning Strike
Despite a drop in the number of weather-damaged vehicles in these states, millions continue to be spent on weather-related auto damage costs for several reasons:
- Even when the number of damaged vehicles is smaller, the high repair costs per incident ensure that the overall financial impact remains substantial.
- Intense weather events in Germany in 2024 resulted in insured losses of around €5.7 billion, highlighting that major weather events still generate significant damage despite fluctuations in the number of affected vehicles[2].
- Spatial variations in the severity and intensity of weather conditions can lead to costly incidents even when the total number of damaged cars decreases, particularly in regions with vulnerable infrastructure and properties.
- The increasing intensity of extreme weather events due to climate change keeps the costs of repairs and insurance payouts high, even when the frequency or total numbers fluctuate[2].
Therefore, the persistence of millions in weather-related auto damage costs despite fewer damaged vehicles in these states can be attributed to the high repair costs per incident and the continued occurrence of intense weather events in the area[2].
- The high repair costs associated with each weather-damaged vehicle incident in Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland contribute to the substantial overall financial impact, despite a decrease in the number of such vehicles.
- Climate change has resulted in a rise in the intensity of extreme weather events, leading to continual high costs for repairs and insurance payouts in these regions, even with fluctuations in the number of damaged vehicles.
