Report: More Insurers Work To Protect Clients From Effects Of Global Warming

Ceres, a U.S. coalition
of investors and environmental groups, has released a report looking at insurance
initiatives related to climate change.

“From Risk to Opportunity:
Insurer Responses to Climate Change” looks closely at more than 600
products and services from 244 insurers, reinsurers, brokers and insurance
organizations in 29 countries.

These new insurance
initiatives include coverage for green buildings, renewable energy, carbon risk
management, and other products to tackle global warming and rising
weather-related losses.

Twenty-four companies are
now offering pay-as-you-drive insurance, giving discounts up to 60 percent for
those who drive less than average drivers.

Green building-related
insurance now comes from 22 companies, and their 39 products cover both new
buildings and upgrades related to losses or regular renovations.

The report comes on the heels of more than $200 billion in
global losses from catastrophes in 2008, the third highest losses ever
reported, including $40 billion from Hurricanes Ike and Gustav. Many of these
losses were uninsured.

A warming climate exacerbates extreme weather events,
even though no single weather event can be blamed on global warming alone. To
learn more about weather-related catastrophes and the changing climate, visit nwf.org/ExtremeWeather.