What Is the No. 1 Risk Factor for Insurers? 'Climate Change'... First Time Ever

For the first time ever, 'climate change' has ranked as the number one major risk factor assessed by insurance companies.

Yonhap News

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According to the latest edition of the '8th Annual Indicator' released on the 4th (local time) by the French Insurance Association, climate change tied for the top major risk factor alongside cyber attacks, Radio France Info reported.

Climate change had long been ranked as the second major risk factor, but as the extent of damage has worsened, it has risen to first place.

The report's authors stated, "The frequency and severity of incidents are both increasing and becoming more pronounced each year." They added, "The resulting disasters affect property, infrastructure, public health, and entire economic systems worldwide."

Last year, global insurance costs due to natural disasters were estimated at $135 billion (approximately 196 trillion KRW).

In fact, last year, severe flood damage occurred in Spain and France. At the end of October last year, floods in the Valencia region of Spain resulted in 224 deaths and 3 missing persons. Local authorities estimated the economic impact at 22 billion euros (approximately 33 trillion KRW) and reconstruction costs at 31.4 billion euros (approximately 47 trillion KRW).

In France, floods occurred in some regions last year due to an abnormal low-pressure system. This caused 145,000 damage claims, with insurance costs estimated at over 700 million euros (approximately 1 trillion KRW).

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