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Insurance in a climate of change.

Mills E

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, MS 90-4000, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA. emills@lbl.gov

Catastrophe insurance provides peace of mind and financial security. Climate change can have adverse impacts on insurance affordability and availability, potentially slowing the growth of the industry and shifting more of the burden to governments and individuals. Most forms of insurance are vulnerable, including property, liability, health, and life. It is incumbent on insurers, their regulators, and the policy community to develop a better grasp of the physical and business risks. Insurers are well positioned to participate in public-private initiatives to monitor loss trends, improve catastrophe modeling, address the causes of climate change, and prepare for and adapt to the impacts.

Published 15 August 2005 in Science, 309(5737): 1040-4.
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