Insurers can get better at responding to natural disasters

As communities recover from the havoc wreaked by Cyclone Debbie, it’s time to accept that disasters will become more intense due to climate change and the cost of insurance will continue to rise.

Insurers could play a key role in
adapting to climate change.

Insurers have a unique insight into the risk and costs associated with climate change. If insurers better informed households about the terms and conditions of insurance and the potential costs of what’s not covered, consumers could help mitigate the risks themselves.

Insurers could also share data with government on how building and changes to infrastructure affects premiums. This would avoid surprises after a disaster hits.

Where insurance products are unaffordable, or cover unavailable, it’s often governments left to foot the bill. Since 2009, this has amounted to more than A$12 billion.

Read the piece on The Conversation by a Research Fellow from the University of Canberra, Tayanah P’Donnell - “Insurers can get better at responding to natural disasters.”