Transforming Insurance: A Way Forward for Community Leaders

By Stephen Brandt, Chief Development Officer, InnSure Corporation —

More and more, we are seeing communities being left behind with little help from insurance. The devastation from Hurricane Helene last fall, for example, resulted in insured losses of approximately $10 billion, a mere fraction of the storm’s total economic impact, which ranged from $30-50 billion at conservative estimates. When considering the staggering high-end estimates of over $200 billion in economic damage, the role of insurance is alarmingly irrelevant.

Regardless of why this is happening, the protection gap is threatening communities’ viability, as property values and tax bases are at risk of being wiped out overnight. Uninsured really means self-insured if you are a community leader.  Communities not only bear the financial burden of responding to major weather events without insurance, they are unable to see a future where the burden is lessened.

InnSure is helping these communities get on a path forward that can give them a plan for the future.  By fully understanding the cost of events on the whole community, not just the insured property, they can begin to shape their future with insurability at the core.  Changing their perspective on financial protection and seeing “Insurance as Infrastructure”, and equally important as physical infrastructure, unlocks possibilities and usable value they are unable to realize today.

When communities incorporate insurability planning into all aspects of their economic development, resilience, and infrastructure planning they begin to make decisions that leverage insurance in innovative ways that are available to them but never considered before. In doing so communities will lower their risk, decrease the protection gap, increase their overall resilience and promote sustainable economic development.

Managing the total cost of risk allows communities to control their own destiny and provides “a Way Forward” regardless of how fickle corporate insurance appetites for risk ebb and flow based on quarterly results.

The issues communities are facing are not small or simplistic.  They are staring down the barrel of disasters that strike, wreak havoc and disrupt their lives and livelihoods for years to come.  The “Way Forward” won’t be small, uncomplicated or easy, but if they start today, think differently about insurance and take one step at a time, they can make the changes they need and bring hope for their future.

InnSure is a non-profit insurance innovation hub, we do not sell insurance, but can help communities get started, develop their plans and maintain a sustainable insurance future.

We invite visionary community leaders eager to innovate and collaborate with insurance markets on equal terms, as well as philanthropic, impact investors and alternative finance institutions passionate about driving sustainable economic growth by revolutionizing community-centered risk financing to reach out.

Catalyzing a Bold Insurance Response to Climate Change: Ways to Engage

InnSure stands as a vibrant non-profit powerhouse, passionately committed to closing the insurance protection gaps that jeopardize our communities and stall our progress toward a sustainable, low-carbon future. We drive our mission forward by igniting and accelerating transformative insurance innovations.

We are convinced that the current challenges in the insurance sector demand a comprehensive reimagination of long-term approaches to insurance delivery. Everything we do is laser-focused on closing protection gaps and fostering stronger, more resilient communities. Without achieving these outcomes, the insurance sector risks fading into irrelevance — and the shift is already underway.

Your participation is the key to transforming our bold vision into tangible successes. Explore the numerous ways a diverse stakeholder community can engage in support of our ambitious agenda:

• Sponsor our programs: Make a donation or provide in-kind support (Individual or Corporate)
• Join InnSure Corps – a multidisciplinary network of climate action leaders interested in reimagining the role of insurance in the age of climate change.
• Share your startup story – We’re eager to connect with startups exploring the intersection of insurtech, climatech and artificial intelligence.
• Venture capitalists and investors: share your profiles to link up with groundbreaking startups poised to make a difference.
• Connect with us to forge impactful partnerships and launch pilots. We are seeking partnerships with local communities ready to pioneer innovative approaches that redefine insurance markets and enhance their resilience. We are also actively pursuing partnerships with like-minded nonprofits dedicated to boosting insurability by empowering communities from the ground up.
• Become or seek a mentor – a collaborative initiative with ARISE-US.
• Schedule a call to explore how you or your company can help prevent an uninsurable, and thus uninhabitable, world.

About InnSure

InnSure is a mission-driven nonprofit at the intersection of insurance innovation and climate change. By amplifying and accelerating climate-friendly insurance solutions and innovation, InnSure is catalyzing a quick, bold, and decisive insurance industry response to climate risk. The organization views its mission through a societal lens, looking for nature-positive ways that insurance can make the world better, create new markets, close the protection gap, increase community resilience, and accelerate the transition to carbon net zero. Through initiatives like the annual InnSure Climate Forum and the NYSERDA-supported Insurance Innovation for Climate-Technology Solutions program, the InnSure ecosystem is designed to foster collaboration between insurance professionals, policymakers, communities, entrepreneurs, risk capacity providers, investors, and stakeholders. For more information, visit innsure.org.

Source: InnSure