Insurers and reinsurers are continuing to revise upwards their loss estimates for the Chile earthquake which struck on February 27, with industry totals now surpassing $6 billion.

Swiss Re recently announced its latest estimate of $630 million, up from its previous estimate of $500 million, and said the figure could rise further. Munich Re said its loss estimate after retrocession and before tax had risen to $1 billion, up from $700 million. It said this was based on an overall market loss of $8 billion, compared with previous estimates of $4 to $7 billion.

Last month, Lloyd’s of London gave its estimate of net claims from the earthquake at $1.4 billion. Other (re)insurers with high loss estimates include the Berkshire Hathaway group, with $500 million from the Chile earthquake and other first quarter wind losses, and AIG, with $310 million. Validus Holdings of Bermuda said in its 8-K filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission its estimate was $293 million, higher than its original range of $170 to $270 million.

Munich Re said that reliable forecasts had been difficult until now because of low primary insurer retentions, ongoing business interruption losses, and a high proportion of individually reinsured production facilities and buildings. It said that the number of individual losses was very high, with local insurance companies receiving more than 190,000 losses by the end of April.

The magnitude 8.8 earthquake occurred off the coast of Chile on February 27 and is believed to have killed more than 500 people.