The ClimateWise Principles, which aim to help re/insurers disclose their response to climate change, have been revised to better align with recommendations set out by the Taskforce for Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).
The alignment has been called an important milestone for enabling the insurance industry to proactively lead and support the TCFD disclosures, opening up new opportunities across the public and private sector for building resilience.
The new principles will come into effect from 2019 and will provide a comprehensive reporting framework for insurers.
Reinsurance giant Swiss Re announced recently that it had adopted recommendations published by the TCFD.
Dr Bronwyn Claire, Senior Programme Manager, CISL, said, “This year has sadly been another record for climate-related events, and together with the recent report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), highlighted that we need to take the level of action called for in the Paris Agreement.
“The role of the insurance industry in showing business leadership and in managing these risks has never been more important.”
“ClimateWise members have been at the forefront for more than a decade, leading the global insurance industry in integrating climate change into their business models, working with clients to improve their resilience and with governments and academics to progress policies and innovation.”
“It is therefore a natural progression that ClimateWise has now aligned our Principles with the recommendations of the Financial Stability Board Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), against which members will report from 2019 onwards.”
Dominic Christian, Chair, ClimateWise and Global Chairman, Aon Benfield, added “The financial services sector is moving rapidly to incorporate climate change risks into business strategy, risk management processes and reporting.”
“Regulators and business leaders, including ClimateWise members, are giving clear examples of what is expected of the financial sector in response to climate change. The Principles report and the updated Principles show the ambition of ClimateWise, whose members are taking steps to meet the challenges of climate change.”
