Britain’s largest general insurer RSA warned yesterday that last week’s wind storms in northern Europe would hit profits, the first major insurer to say so, sending its shares tumbling over 8 per cent.

Broker Willis Re has estimated insurers will have to pay out up to $1.75 billion in claims after the storm dubbed “Christian” sent hurricane strength winds through Europe, killing more than a dozen people.

The world’s No. 1 reinsurer, Munich Re and Europe’s No. 1 insurer, Allianz have declined to estimate damage claims from “Christian”. They report third quarter results tomorrow and on Friday, respectively.

RSA said that “Christian” costs as well as those from floods in Canada this year, deemed that country’s costliest natural disaster, would mean “full year weather losses... materially above planning assumptions”.

It had said in August that it remained on track to meet full year targets after absorbing the cost of claims from Canadian floods, though it conceded the impact would continue into the second half of 2013.

“We now expect 2013 return on equity to be below 10 per cent,” RSA said in a statement.