Climate change is causing an exponential increase in the frequency and intensity of catastrophic events. Annually, losses due to extreme climate events total around $300bn, around two thirds of which is currently uninsured.

Many people are excluded from traditional insurance cover because policies are linked to assets such as home ownership, rather than the secondary costs incurred through lost income, damage to local infrastructure and the need for temporary accommodation.

Global warming predictions amplify these losses drastically. A 2°C rise in global temperature increases the predicted losses from $316 billion to $2.3 trillion annually. A 3°C rise in global temperature increases the predicted losses to $20tn each year.