Report Identifies More Than 180 Products to Handle Climate Change

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Dozens of new insurance products are quietly emerging to tackle climate change and fast-rising weather losses – but insurance companies need to do more of the same to minimize losses and make the most of opportunities related to climate change – according to a report from the Ceres investor coalition.

The report outlines the win-win situation of insurers developing services to help consumers and businesses reduce their losses from extreme weather, while also reducing the pollution causing global warming. The report identifies more than 180 products and activities that are either already out or in the pipeline from dozens of insurance providers. However, the report concludes that the vast market potential related to climate change/other increasing weather damage is still largely untapped by the industry. The report also outlines the growing crisis of insurance availability and affordability in regions of the U.S., especially along the Gulf Coast, Florida and New England.

The report – written by two insurance industry experts – will be considered by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), which formed a special task force on the climate change issue last December. NAIC, comprised of state insurance regulators, is the primary regulatory body for the insurance industry.

Ceres will be sponsoring a telenews event at 10:30 a.m. EST on Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2006, to go over the report. The conference will feature state insurance regulators from Nebraska and Washington, as well as the CEO of CalSTRS, a major investor in insurance companies.

News event participants will be:
* Mindy S. Lubber, president, Ceres;
* Nebraska Insurance Director Tim Wagner;
* Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler;
* Dr. Evan Mills, lead report author and scientist, U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; and
* Jack Ehnes, CEO, California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) and former insurance industry executive

A streaming audio replay of this news event will be available as of 4 p.m. EST on Aug. 22, 2006 on the Ceres Web Site at http://www.ceres.org.

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