Catastrophe Risks

An updated forecast of 2020 Atlantic hurricane activity developed by researchers at Colorado State University predicts 19 named storms, including 9 hurricanes, 4 of them major hurricanes. The Colorado state forecasters said they anticipate "well-above-average activity" this hurricane season. Read More

The member governments of the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility Segregated Portfolio Company (CCRIF SPC) all renewed their parametric insurance coverage for disasters including tropical cyclones, excess rainfall, earthquakes, and fisheries ahead of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season that started June 1. Members ceded more than $1 billion in risk to CCRIF SPC this year. Read More

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed new and changing risks, highlighted societies' lack of preparation for such a crisis, and made clear that broad risk awareness is essential for proper risk management, according to a new SONAR report from Swiss Re. Read More

In its annual hurricane season report, Fitch Ratings suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic's continuation into this year's hurricane season is likely to increase the challenge for insurers if a major storm occurs. Most 2020 hurricane season forecasts predict above-average activity this year. Read More

The Federation of European Risk Management Associations (FERMA) has called on the European Commission to create a European Union business interruption resilience framework for catastrophic risks. FERMA called on the commission to address the "severe shortage" of business interruption insurance for disruptions that don't involve physical damage. Read More