Hurricane Katrina claims could reach $60 billion.

Hurricane Katrina claims could reach $60 billion.
Insurance companies now report that the estimated claims costs for property-casualty firms from Hurricane Katrina have reached upward of $60 billion.

As a result, Standard Poor's put the ratings of 10 insurance groups on its watch list for potential downgrade. Among them are State Farm Insurance, Allstate Corp. and such top commercial insurers as Lloyd's of London.

Sellers of home insurance could soon be dealing with billions of dollars more in claims costs if some class-action lawsuits and elected leaders are successful in forcing them to pick up costs from flooding, despite the fact that standard coverage has excluded flood damage for decades.

While most flood insurance is sold by the U.S. government, the bulk of homeowners in the affected Gulf Coast areas are not believed to have purchased the specialized policies.