FILE PHOTO: Residents walk past the Quarry Road informal settlement outside Durban on April 18, 2022 as rain again begins to fall following winds, downpours and mudslides, which destroyed homes and infrastructure.(Photo by RAJESH JANTILAL/AFP via Getty Images)
The consequences of climate change span every aspect of people’s lives — how we earn income, produce and consume food and respond to climate change. The insurance industry, and importantly its clients and citizens at large, are not spared by the severe weather patterns caused by climate change.
In April 2022, Kwazulu-Natal was ravaged by floods – the worst natural disaster in the history of the province and one of the worst nationally in terms of lives lost, homes and infrastructure damaged or destroyed and economic impacts.
In September 2023 at least 11 people died during floods in the Western Cape, with more than 200 roads closed and power outages affecting around 80 000 people. On 13 November, while a tornado was spotted in Mpumalanga, hundreds of cars and homes in Gauteng were damaged by hail the size of golf balls.
The climate is not changing; it has changed. The effects are tangible and the impact is real. As adverse climate events and adverse weather conditions increase, so will insurance costs. As the world changes to adapt, so must the insurance industry.
Standard Bank Insurance, in association with the Mail & Guardian, invites you to a thought-leadership dialogue, facilitated by SAfm’s Cathy Mohlahlana, where they will unpack the impact of severe weather patterns to the industry, seeking additional solutions to help South Africans protect what matters.
WATCH: Is there more we can do to mitigate the risks?