Despite wind often being identified as the peak peril by the (re)insurance industry in Europe, flooding also has a long — and well-known — history in the region. Home to several large river systems and swathes of adjacent densely populated areas, Europe has experienced several significant events in the last 20 years — with losses largely stemming from these major waterways.
In recent decades, however, flood resilience measures and underwriting adjustments following major historical events have played a significant role in mitigating this type of flood exposure — and contributing to a reduction in losses from river flooding.
Despite this, looking at the wider picture paints an evolving story in Europe — with losses now more commonly stemming from smaller, rainfall-driven events and subsequently posing a potential new risk for insurers.
In this whitepaper from Gallagher Re's property team, our catastrophe risk specialists explore:
- How Europe's changing flood reality is redistributing losses away from major urban centers and into smaller catchments that may be overlooked when assessing exposure.
- The accumulation risk this could pose to insurers, with rainfall-driven flooding happening more regularly and in areas not usually captured using historical claims data.
- How advanced flood analytics like Gallagher Re's Europe Flood Model can help fill the gaps in historical experience and identify exposure hotspots for more proactive decision-making.
Read the whitepaper to discover the full insights.