Reinsurance News

Climate change news

News on climate change and how it affects the global insurance and reinsurance industry.

U.S hit by 14 billion dollar nat cats in 2018: NOAA

7th February 2019

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has released data showing the U.S experienced 14 natural catastrophes each causing over $1 billion in damages in 2018; both the number of events and their cumulative cost ranked fourth highest since records began in 1980. Hurricane Michael topped the list, inflicting over $25 ... Read the full article

Pricing insufficient to account for climate and higher cats: Wallin, Hannover Re

6th February 2019

Ulrich Wallin, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of reinsurance giant Hannover Re, has underlined the fact that climate change is not included within current catastrophe pricing, adding that pricing is not sufficient to deal with increased catastrophe losses. Hannover Re recently announced a solid January renewals season, which, keeps the ... Read the full article

Public-private partnerships urgently needed to build climate resilience: Swiss Re

30th January 2019

Further cooperation is urgently needed between the public and private sectors in order build global resilience to climate change and the growing threat of natural catastrophes, according to reinsurance giant Swiss Re. Reporting from the World Economic Forum 2019 event in Davos, Switzerland, Swiss Re said that public-private partnerships, such as ... Read the full article

Re/insurers should consider rewarding climate resilience efforts: Aon

23rd January 2019

Insurers and reinsurers should consider responding to climate change risks by rewarding corporate resilience efforts with premium discounts or access to additional capital, according to Aon. The broker noted in its latest Weather, Climate & Catastrophe Insight report that recent trends in natural disaster activity are putting increasing pressure on re/insurers ... Read the full article

Allianz, AXA & Swiss Re among brands most praised for climate actions

21st January 2019

Re/insurers Allianz, AXA and Swiss Re are among the top five companies to receive the praise from non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in 2018 due to their actions on climate change. Data compiled by research consultancy SIGWATCH shows that the trio of re/insurers overtook global brands such as McDonald’s, Aldi and H&M as ... Read the full article

Rising sea levels a manageable concern for re/insurers, says climate expert

15th January 2019

Sea level rise over the 21st century will not be as severe as many climate models have predicted and should not present a major issue for re/insurers provided it is managed appropriately, according to Dr. Judith Curry, President of Climate Forecast Applications Network and Professor Emeritus, Georgia Institute of Technology. Curry ... Read the full article

Ten re/insurers rule out support for Australian coal mine following climate campaign

20th December 2018

Ten of the world’s largest insurers and reinsurers will not provide support for the development of Adani Group’s Carmichael coal mine in Queensland, Australia, following a campaign by 73 prominent environmental organisations. The organisations, which collectively represent 76 million members, penned a letter to 30 global re/insurance companies earlier this ... Read the full article

ClimateWise Principles revised to better align with TCFD recommendations

19th December 2018

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 ... Read the full article

PRA’s climate change plan may conflict with shareholder expectations: Moody’s

17th December 2018

A recent consultation paper on climate change published by the UK’s Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) is likely to enhance the long-term risk management of re/insurers, but may conflict with the near-term expectations of shareholders, according to Moody’s. Moody’s said that, if implemented, it expects the PRA’s proposed standard to improve ... Read the full article

Vulnerable countries push re/insurance agenda at COP24 climate event

11th December 2018

Representatives of some of the world’s most vulnerable countries have used the ongoing 24th Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP24) in Katowice, Poland to push for a broader climate and disaster risk financing and re/insurance agenda. Members of the Vulnerable Twenty (V20) group, which represents 48 of the world's most ... Read the full article

AXA XL division to adopt AXA Group’s climate strategy

29th November 2018

AXA Group has announced that its sustainability and climate strategy will be extended to AXA XL, the division that was established following the acquisition of XL Group. The move will see AXA XL, which focuses on large property and casualty (P&C) Commercial Lines, implement the Group’s Corporate Responsibility policies, including those ... Read the full article

Re/insurers taking a “leading role” in the ESG agenda: A.M. Best

19th November 2018

In light of the current absence of any global guidance on how to integrate environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria into business models, a number of major participants in the re/insurance industry have taken a “leading role” on these issues, according to A.M. Best. Re/insurers are uniquely positioned to tackle the ... Read the full article

IAG says climate change could make world ‘uninsurable’: Financial Review

16th November 2018

The insurance industry will be unable to operate effectively if the current trajectory of climate change proves accurate, Insurance Australia Group (IAG) Executive Jacki Johnson told the Financial Review. Johnson’s comments come after the UN Environment’s Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) announced a partnership with a group of 16 large, global ... Read the full article

UN partners with 16 global re/insurers to develop climate risk assessment tools

16th November 2018

The UN Environment's Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) has announced a partnership with a group of 16 large, global insurers and reinsurers, to develop a new generation of risk assessment tools that enable the risk transfer industry to better understand the impacts of climate change on their business. The 16 companies represent ... Read the full article

Argo broker survey identifies most pressing re/insurance shortfalls

6th November 2018

A survey of brokers and the small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) they serve, conducted by global specialty re/insurer Argo Group International Holdings, Ltd., has identified cybercrime, climate change, and talent retention as among the areas where re/insurance is most likely to fall behind. For example, Argo found that 71% of brokers ... Read the full article