Total economic losses and global insured losses from natural catastrophes and man-made disasters in 2016 were the highest since 2012, reversing the downtrend of the previous four years.

The Australian Property team at Swiss Re Corporate Solutions have brought over 150 years of global experience, a commitment to claims and significant capital capacity into a single carrier product that will help you manage your risk.

On 24 August 2016, a magnitude 6.2 earthquake hit the Apennines Mountains in central Italy, devastating the small towns of Amatrice, Accumoli and Pescara del Tronto. At the time of writing, 293 lives were lost. This is the latest in a series of heavy earthquakes to hit Italy in recent years. The country is particularly exposed to earthquake risk as it is located where continental plates collide and building stock is vulnerable. Yet just over 1% of residential buildings are insured against earthquakes. How can Italy and its residents better prepare for future events?

Il 24 agosto 2016, un terremoto di magnitudo 6,2 ha colpito gli Appennini nel centro Italia devastando le cittadine di Amatrice, Accumoli e Pescara del Tronto. Il 26 ottobre, due scosse di assestamento di magnitudo 5,5 e 6,1 hanno colpito Visso, a nord di Amatrice. Il 30 ottobre, una scossa di magnitudo 6,6 ha colpito Norcia, un comune fra Amatrice e Visso. Quest’ultimo è stato il terremoto di maggiore intensità a colpire l’Italia dal 1980 ed il tremore è stato avvertito in quasi tutto il Paese. Nel complesso, ci sono state 299 vittime. Questa è stata l’ultima di una serie di terremoti disastrosi verificatisi in Italia negli ultimi anni. Il Paese è particolarmente soggetto al rischio sismico in quanto e situato in una zona in cui le placche continentali entrano in collisione ed il patrimonio edilizio è vulnerabile. Eppure, poco più dell’1% degli edifici residenziali è assicurato contro i terremoti. Come possono l’Italia ed i suoi abitanti prepararsi ad affrontare meglio gli eventi futuri?

CatNet® is an up-to-date source of information on major natural disasters and their effects on the insurance industry and national economies.

Japan’s commercial insurance market is the fourth largest in the world after the US, the UK and China. Commercial insurance premiums in Japan totalled USD 33.5 billion in 2015. Penetration (premiums as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP)) has been rising in recent years, but it is still low relative to other advanced markets. In 2015, commercial insurance penetration in Japan was 0.81% of GDP, compared to 1.6% in the US and 2.4% in the UK.

Severe winter storms in quick succession can have a deadly impact on an insurer’s balance sheet. The industry has responded by providing coverage structures that address this eventuality. The premiums of such cover must be commensurate with the underlying risk. To assess a fair premium, we need a model that can estimate the frequency and severity of such storms, as well as when they’re likely to occur within a season. This publication discusses benchmarks for such models, so enabling you to secure the right protection for the storms to come.

Insurance today relies on models to predict earthquaketriggered losses on the US west coast. But there is a lurking danger. Many do not consider the variability of model outcomes. As research by Swiss Re reveals, this can lead to an underestimation of ensuing losses.