The role of insurers in promoting adaptation to the impacts of climate change

Scientific evidence is accumulating that climate change is having an impact on the frequency, intensity and geographical distribution of extreme weather events. With these trends likely to continue for the foreseeable future, the insurance industry can help society to adapt, by limiting and managing risks associated with extreme weather, and thereby maintaining the insurability of potentially vulnerable and exposed populations. There are already examples of the insurance industry promoting efforts to mitigate the impacts of weather hazards, by disseminating information about reducing the vulnerability of properties, offering financial incentives to invest in mitigating the impacts of extreme weather, and by working in partnership with policy-makers to establish maximum thresholds of acceptable risk. However, these efforts need to be more widely promoted by insurers to make a significant contribution to society’s adaptation to climate change.