Reinsurance News

climate risk

Climate risk related insurance and reinsurance news and analysis.

The impacts of climate related risks are a key topic for the insurance and reinsurance industry, while providing risk transfer solutions to hedge against and protect from climate risk related losses is an important area of innovation for the market.

UN partnership sees IDF members pledge $5bn of capacity to climate resilience

23rd September 2019

As part of a new collaboration with the UN Development Programme (UNDP), members of the Insurance Development Forum (IDF) have committed to offer up to US $5 billion of risk capacity to support climate resilience in developing countries. The initiative hopes to increase insurance protection in climate-exposed countries in lines with ... Read the full article

Climate change among top reinsurer concerns in 2019, reports PwC

9th September 2019

Climate change has quickly climbed the ranks to join technology and cyber risk as one of the three most pressing concerns for the reinsurance industry in 2019, according to the new Banana Skins report by PwC. Now ranked as the third-biggest concern to reinsurers, climate risk is a new entry to ... Read the full article

Background paper calls for better use of insurance to adapt to changing climate

27th August 2019

A background paper submitted to the Global Commission on Adaptation by global risk transfer experts recommends numerous ways to maximise the benefits of risk transfer solutions for climate adaption. Specifically, the paper calls for investment in open-source models that offer a long-term view of climate risk and link to insurance solutions, ... Read the full article

Climate change liability poses serious risk to profitability: Clyde & Co

6th August 2019

New laws and regulation that have emerged in response to climate change are giving rise to liability risks that pose a serious risk to companies’ future profitability, according to a new report from law firm Clyde & Co. The firm noted that there has been a twenty-fold increase in climate law ... Read the full article

Climate change among most urgent threats for reinsurers: CSFI & PwC report

16th July 2019

Climate change is ranked as the second most urgent threat to business by reinsurers, and as the third most urgent by property and casualty (P&C) insurers, according to a new report from the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation (CSFI) and PwC. The Insurance Banana Skins 2019 report surveyed re/insurers ... Read the full article

Climate change risks hit $1 trillion for some of the world’s largest firms: Report

3rd July 2019

A group of the world's largest companies across various industries have reported almost $1 trillion at risk from climate change, with a potential $250 billion in losses as a result of write-offs of assets, according to a report by CPD, an international non-profit focused on driving environmental change. In the global ... Read the full article

Chubb recognises climate change reality, says Greenberg, pulls back from coal

1st July 2019

Chubb has become the latest major re/insurer to adopt a climate policy that aims to phase out its exposure to coal-related underwriting and investment. As part of the announcement, Evan G. Greenberg, Chairman and CEO of Chubb, said that the company “recognizes the reality of climate change and the substantial impact ... Read the full article

Zurich commits to UN climate pledge, plans to lower fossil fuel exposure

25th June 2019

Zurich Insurance Group has committed to setting new climate targets in line with the framework of the UN Global Compact Business Ambition Pledge, which aims to limit the rise in global temperatures to 1.5°C. As part of its commitment, Zurich will expand its existing thermal coal policy by engaging with clients ... Read the full article

Nephila’s Schauble appeals for more climate action using new products & data

19th June 2019

Barney Schauble, Managing Principle at Nephila Advisors, has urged the re/insurance industry to utilise new products and data in tackling the risks posed by climate change, which he believes are not being adequately addressed. Speaking at the MMC Rising Professionals’ Global Forum, Schauble argued that, with the success of the capital ... Read the full article

Climate action needed to limit fallout for life re/insurers: Swiss Re

17th June 2019

Unless further action is taken, the effects of climate change are likely to have “significant consequences” for life and health re/insurers, who will have to deal with increase risks from heatwaves, floods, droughts, fires and vector-borne diseases. This is according to a new report from Swiss Re, which linked climate change ... Read the full article

Munich Re CEO calls for higher price on carbon emissions

10th June 2019

Joachim Wenning, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at reinsurer Munich Re, has urged European policymakers to increase the cost of emitting carbon, according to reports from the Financial Times. Wenning believes that such a move would create financial incentives to accelerate the switch from fossil fuels to renewables, thereby helping to limit ... Read the full article

Warmer climate is driving higher re/insurance costs: Swiss Re report

16th May 2019

Rising global temperatures due to climate change have heightened the risk of costly events such as wildfire and drought and significantly impacted the level of re/insurance industry losses in recent years, according to the latest sigma report by Swiss Re. Swiss Re expects that climate change will cause more frequent occurrences ... Read the full article

Climate factors to be “fully integrated” into SCOR’s new strategy: Denis Kessler

30th April 2019

French reinsurer SCOR intends to “fully integrate” a range of climate risk management approaches into its next strategic plan, according to Chairman & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Denis Kessler. Kessler’s comments came alongside the announcement of SCOR's commitment to more stringent underwriting exclusions for coal-based businesses, which climate activist group ... Read the full article

SCOR & AXA commit to more coal exclusions

26th April 2019

French re/insurers SCOR and AXA have both committed to strengthening their coal exclusion policies in an effort to limit the effects of climate change, according to environmental campaigners at Unfriend Coal. A representative from the activist group questioned the companies at their annual general meetings this week, who both claimed to ... Read the full article

Hannover Re to restrict underwriting for coal-based risks

18th April 2019

Hannover Re has announced that it plans to adopt a more restrictive underwriting policy for the reinsurance of coal-based risks in order to help combat climate change. As a general principle, the reinsurer will not provide coverage for any planned new coal-fired power plants or coal mines, and aims to no ... Read the full article