In the aftermath of Storm Babet and the looming threat of further weather-related disasters, Dr. Eugenia Cacciatori, Senior Lecturer in Management at Bayes Business School (formerly Cass), is calling for a comprehensive integration of insurance into the UK’s resilience landscape.
The recent early autumn storms, including the menacing Storm Ciarán, have once again left the UK vulnerable to flooding, resulting in extensive damage, power outages, and even tragic fatalities.
Dr. Cacciatori, who co-authored the book “Disaster Insurance Reimagined: Protection in a Time of Increasing Risk,” emphasises the urgent need for insurance schemes to become more accessible and better integrated with broader resilience strategies to effectively combat the growing threat of weather-related disasters.
She notes that insurance plays a crucial role in rebuilding after such calamities, offering financial support to help individuals and communities recover.
However, many victims of the recent storms have found themselves without adequate insurance coverage due to its high cost or limited availability. This has left them facing severe financial hardships in the aftermath of the disasters.
Dr. Cacciatori warns that failing to address these issues could perpetuate poverty cycles, making it increasingly challenging for communities to secure insurance for their properties and assets.
The solution, according to Dr. Cacciatori, lies in the integration of insurance with measures aimed at reducing vulnerability to future disasters.
Government and industry collaboration, as exemplified by initiatives like Flood Re, can provide affordable flood insurance options for high-risk homes, which would otherwise be unable to obtain private market insurance.
Flood Re is funded in part through a levy on insurers and focuses on supporting “Build Back Better” initiatives to enhance resilience and reduce damage in the face of future floods.
While initiatives at the homeowner level are important, Dr. Cacciatori emphasises that further action is required in areas such as planning and building standards.
She believes that the wealth of knowledge within the insurance industry on risk assessment can play a significant role in achieving these goals.
“Integrating insurance in the wider resilience landscape is not easy and many countries are struggling with this problem. Some countries however offer useful models. Switzerland, for example, has insurers included in any conversation about construction and resilience, and this mindset must be adopted in the UK to alleviate the worst effects of flooding,” Dr. Cacciatori noted.
