Engaging in a dialogue with academia, the insurance industry, government and the corporate world will enable the reinsurance industry to become more relevant in its customers’ lives.
The interaction between practice and research has been a hallmark of the Hazards Conference Series for over two decades. The fundamental aim is to provide a regular forum for the insurance industry, researchers and leading-edge practitioners to meet and understand their respective roles in shaping the industry both now and in the future.
Over 350 delegates are expected to attend Aon Benfield’s conference on 21-23 September in the Gold Coast, Australia with this year’s theme of “Beyond Tomorrow …” exploring ways to improve risk management in an increasingly complex world.
Speakers and panelists this year will provide perspectives on understanding the future through talks on big data, evolving market trends and how pending technological advancements will challenge the insurance industry to evolve. Big picture trends will examine developments in the science of natural hazards and disasters and include a panel discussion on futurist fear factors. Corporate resilience will feature heavily in sessions associated with planning for the future while the conference will conclude with a series of presentations looking toward opportunities in an evolving marketplace.
Robert De Souza, CEO Australia & New Zealand for Aon Benfield and conference host, commented:
“With an influx of capital into the market and a below-norm year of catastrophe losses, the insurance and reinsurance industry is looking at how to innovate. Reinsurers need to review their value offering and stay relevant in a changing market. The conference provides an opportunity to spend time hearing from academic and insurance industry thought leaders on emerging challenges and collaborate to build resilience around these risks of the future.”
One risk is coastal flooding. Professor Robert Nicholls from the University of Southampton in the UK will highlight how urban areas should be a major focus for the impacts of coastal flooding due to extreme sea levels, human-induced subsidence and population growth. Across the 136 global port cities studied, about 40 million people or roughly 1 in 10 of the population are exposed to a 1 in 100 year coastal flood event. The global value of assets exposed in 2005 across all cities is estimated to be USD3000 billion, equating to 5% of global GDP in 2005. The top ten cities in terms of exposed population are estimated to be Mumbai, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Miami, Ho Chi Minh City, Kolkata, Greater New York, Osaka-Kobe, Alexandria and New Orleans, almost equally split between developed and developing countries.
Malcolm Steingold, CEO Asia Pacific for Aon Benfield, added:
“These emerging risks bring opportunities for product innovation and will enable new markets to flourish by taking advantage of the abundance of capacity. Notably within Asia Pacific, Aon Benfield is working with insurers to identify Asia Pacific countries where global market insurers and reinsurers can seek diversification or where Asian firms can look for multi-national expansion through offering clients more relevant products that reflect their changing needs.”
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