Fit for Purpose and Fit for the Future? An Evaluation of the UK's New Flood Reinsurance Pool

Submitted on 27th May 2019
Source
Resources for the Future

Abstract - Flood Re is widely hailed as an innovative approach to disaster risk insurance. This paper offers a mixed-methods evaluation of the new pool, asking whether it is “fit for purpose” and “fit for the future.” The investigation considers the roles of the public and private sectors, risk modelling and risk communication, technical underwriting, distributional aspects and the behavioural implications of Flood Re, particularly with regards to risk reduction and prevention. The paper concludes that the new pool is a transitional reinsurance arrangement that supports the private insurance market and secures affordability of flood insurance in the UK through premium subsidies. However, this approach is likely to come under pressure in the face of rising flood risk as it fails to incentivize flood risk management and risk reduction efforts.

Length of Resource
43 pages
Author
Swenja Surminski
Date Published
Publication Type
Research paper
Resource Type
Academic