DENVER – The hailstorm that pounded the Denver metro area May 8 is on pace to be the most expensive in state history, according to the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association.
The association is estimating more than 150,000 auto insurance claims and 50,000 homeowners insurance claims totaling $1.4 billion have or will be filed after the catastrophic storm.
That billion-dollar price tag would surpass the $845.5 million July 20, 2009 storm and the July 11, 1990 storm ($1.1 billion), the most expensive in adjusted costs for today's dollars.
GALLERY | See photos of the hail and the damage it caused around Colorado
The May hailstorm pummeled the west metro area with baseball-size hail, damaging thousands of homes, cars and the Colorado Mills Mall in Golden.
"The enormous size of the hail hitting densely populated areas of the Denver-Metro during rush hour has contributed to the magnitude of damage caused by this storm," says Carole Walker, Executive Director of the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association. "Add to that Colorado's population boom, escalating costs to repair high-tech cars and more expensive homes, the insurance price tag on our hailstorms can be expected to continue to rise."
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Here are the nine other hailstorms that cost Colorado the most, according to RMIIA.
- July 20, 2009 - Storm hits the Denver metro area and costs $767.6 million ($845.5 million in 2015 dollars).
- June 6-15, 2009 - Storm hits the Denver metro area and costs $353.3 million ($389.2 million in 2015 dollars).
- July 28, 2016 - Storm hits Colorado Springs and costs $352.8 million.
- June 6-7, 2012 – Storm hits the Front Range and costs $321.1 million ($330.5 million in 2015 dollars).
- June 13-14, 1984 - Storm hits the Denver metro area and costs $276.7 million ($629.3 million in 2015 dollars).
- July 29, 2009 - Storm hits Pueblo and costs $232.8 million ($256.5 million in 2015 dollars).
- October 1, 1994 - Storm hits the Denver metro area and costs $225.0 million ($358.8 million in 2015 dollars).
- September 29, 2014 - Storm hits the Denver metro area and costs $213.3 million ($213.4 million in 2015 dollars).
- May 22, 2008 - Storm hits Windsor and costs $193.5 million ($212.3 million in 2015 dollars).
- July 13, 2011 – Storm hits the Front Range and costs $164.8 million ($173.1 million in 2015 dollars).
