Experts: Hurricane Katrina, floods, could lead to a rise in home insurance rates

A number of insurance experts in the Czech Republic have indicated in a new survey (conducted by the CTK news agency) that recent floods in Central and Eastern Europe, as well as the devastating Hurricane Katrina in the U.S., could have a wider impact in raising home insurance rates - both in the Czech Republic as well as abroad - next year. According to observers Hurricane Katrina alone will hit global insurance companies hard, and in the survey experts say companies may choose to compensate for damages of around 26 billion US dollars by raising rates on different markets.