Insured losses from Hurricane Matthew are estimated at up to $US8.8 billion ($11.6 billion), with most of the bill borne by US insurers, according to AIR Worldwide.

The first Category 5 Atlantic hurricane since 2007 caused widespread damage in five US states and the Caribbean earlier this month, with Haiti the worst hit.

The bill for US insurers ranges from $US2.2 billion to $US6.8 billion ($2.9 billion to $8.9 billion), the catastrophe modeller says. Estimates for the Caribbean vary from $US600 million to $US2 billion ($790 million to $2.6 billion).

Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia are the five US states affected. More than 3 million people were evacuated as Matthew’s winds hit 160kmh and caused severe power cuts.

Insured losses in Haiti are likely to be low because of limited coverage in the impoverished nation.

Meanwhile, Category 4 Hurricane Nicole was downgraded to Category 3 as it headed towards Bermuda last week, sparing the Caribbean island significant damage, although 90% of customers suffered power disruptions.

“Nicole’s impacts are no longer being felt on Bermuda, except for swells and rip currents,” AIR Worldwide Assistant VP and Principal Scientist Scott Stransky said at the weekend.

“Nicole continues to weaken as it is being torn apart by wind shear and heads northeast.

“Nicole is expected to become post-tropical soon, remaining a strong storm into next week, but it is not expected to affect land, except for swells on portions of the east coast and Atlantic Canada during the next few days.”