WTW launches parametric policy for Red Weather Warnings

New data from Munich Re's NatCatSERVICE global database reveals a stark reality: Australia has held the unwanted silver medal for extreme weather losses per capita for over four decades. The Insurance Council of Australia's fifth annual Insurance Catastrophe Resilience Report shows that each decade since 1980 has been costlier than the last, with Australians bearing an outsized burden in both insurance claims and economic losses compared to other developed nations. This analysis highlights Australia’s exposure to extreme weather and underscores the need for increased investment to better protect communities. This means: ➡️ resilience and mitigation infrastructure and projects ➡️ stronger homes, built in the right location ➡️ targeted investment to protect those most at risk, ➡️ relocation and buy-backs where the risk is too great. Together, these measures can lessen the impact of extreme weather and better protect Australian homes, businesses, communities and the economy. 🔗 Read the full report: https://lnkd.in/gqUriwiz

The Insurance Council’s "Catastrophe Resilience Report 2024-25" sets out how extreme weather has become an economic and social challenge, not just a climatic one. Its focus on long-term, practical solutions — resilient infrastructure, fairer tax settings and smarter land-use planning — shows where policy and industry can meet to strengthen national resilience. Insurance Council of Australia #resilience #insurance

The Insurance Council of Australia’s newly released 2024-25 Insurance Catastrophe Resilience Report, drawing on Munich Re’s #NatCatSERVICE data, shows that Australia has consistently ranked at least second highest compared to a range of other developed countries for weather-related inflation adjusted losses per capita for four decades from 1980-2020, second only to the United States. This long-term trend reflects the intersection of hazard, exposure, and vulnerability: the increasing severity of extreme weather events made worse by #ClimateChange; the high concentration of people, property, and infrastructure in at-risk regions; and vulnerabilities linked to building standards, land use, and the capacity of protective and emergency systems. Together, these factors underscore the urgent need to invest in greater resilience: strengthening homes and infrastructure, improving land-use planning, protecting those most at risk and supporting relocation or buy-backs where the danger is simply too great. Understanding how these factors interact is essential to managing a changing risk landscape, now and into the future.

What does climate change really mean for the future of insurance availability and affordability? Reading this report, the future might seem bleak, with average annual losses per person already rising around the world. Amongst developed nations Australia and New Zealand rank second and third after the US for both insured and economic losses since the 1980s. One of the key challenges highlighted in this report is that in Australia, those most affected by floods are often the most vulnerable - typically uninsured due to affordability barriers. In fact, 70% of impacted properties are in areas with below-average income. However, while the data is sobering, the solutions are within reach. The report explores potential government actions, such as prohibiting developments in high risk areas or having stronger building standards. One action that stood out to me regarding insurance affordability is abolishing state taxes and levies on insurance products, which significantly drive up insurance premiums. As climate risk grows, evidence-based solutions are no longer optional - they're essential for long-term climate resilience.

💲 “We are starting to reach the limits of traditional insurance.”💲 This statement was made last week by Urs Baertschi, chief executive of property and casualty reinsurance at the reinsurance giant Swiss Re. The reinsurance industry is in many ways on the front line of the climate crisis.  We should listen to what they are saying through sharp pricing increases, increased attachment prices (aka deductibles) and their refusal of insurance across entire (and growing) geographical areas. As Bloomberg reports over the last decade the top 19 global reinsurers have more than halved their exposure to insured catastrophe losses. Risk is bad now, but the climate crisis will make storms and wildfires worse: 💲Not that long ago a year with $100 billion in insured natural catastrophe losses was considered significant 💲Now that has become the norm and the industry is pushing toward $150 billion in losses every year 💲Swiss Re calculates that natural catastrophe insured losses are growing by 5 to 7 percent annually, and sees a 1 in 10 chance of a $300 billion dollar year in the near future. What does all that mean? ➡️ All of us: governments, businesses and individuals need to more rapidly reduce our  emissions to hopefully avoid the higher temperature scenarios. If not lack of insurance will be the least of our worries. ➡️ Governments need to take adaptation measures more seriously - whether increasing flood defences or refusal of planning permission to build in fire adjacent or flood hot spots. ➡️ Businesses need to urgently update their climate risk analysis, mitigation and adaptation plans. And take action accordingly.  Better to move your factory now than wait for the year when insurance becomes cost prohibitive and/or the factory is wiped out by floods or fire. Surely the reinsurance industry knows what it is talking about. But will we listen? ♻️Repost to share the information and follow Suzanne Wise for more.

Insurance should be a stabilizing force for homeownership, but today it’s becoming a source of risk itself. At #ClimateWeekNYC, conversations about resilience are more urgent than ever. In our latest Beyond the Buildings episode, Maiclaire Bolton-Smith and Russell McIntyre unpack how natural disasters, rising costs, and policy challenges are straining the insurance system—and what it will take to rebuild stability. Listen now: https://ctlty.co/4nw0XOY

Wildfires are now being treated as a primary peril, with insurers and reinsurers forced to rethink underwriting, pricing, and capital allocation, says Lindsey Frase (née Braff) of Howden Re. California’s January 2025 fires exposed a widening protection gap, leaving billions of economic losses uninsured and testing the market’s resilience. Explore how regulation, capital, and innovation could reshape wildfire coverage: https://ow.ly/Gigb50X6MuY #APCIA2025

From historic wildfires to billion-dollar hailstorms and floods, the past two years have refigured the Canadian insurance and reinsurance landscape. 🛡️ Guillaume Chaput, FCIA, offers a sharp reflection on what these weather events mean for risk modelling, reinsurance strategy and the future of resilience. Read our latest article to learn: 🔥 How exposure creep is driving up losses 🏘️ What insurers and governments must do to build back better 📉 The complexities of climate attribution https://lnkd.in/eJnU5CJB #Insurance #Reinsurance #Climate #CatastropheModelling

Global insured natural catastrophe losses amounted to $80b in 1H 2025, making it one of the costliest first half-years on record: http://spr.ly/6042APYAk Key Highlights: -- Natural catastrophe weather-related events have become more frequent and intense, leading to ever-higher insured losses, even when adjusted for inflation. -- However, we observe recent softening in commercial property insurance premiums that is primarily driven by abundant reinsurance capital and market competition. #InsuranceIndustry #ClimateRisk

As climate risks grow, property insurers are increasing catastrophic deductibles. Do you know how your policy would respond after a major loss? Woodruff Sawyer breaks down the key deductible types and their financial impact. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/ghQ6KGag