Impact Assessment of Natural Disasters on Reconstruction Costs

In recent decades the frequency and severity of natural disasters increased. This development is accompanied by an increase in catastrophe related economic losses and is assumed to continue for the foreseeable future if effective disaster mitigation efforts are omitted. Due to the massive destruction of physical assets the basis for economic losses are generally reconstruction costs, which must be raised after a catastrophe to restore the original state of buildings and infrastructure. Thus, the need for reconstruction together with the financial influx from disaster relief and insurance payouts might create a boom. As a consequence some economic sectors might even experience positive effects after natural disasters, e. g., retail and construction.