Flood "gap" in Italy

The protection gap is not just a problem for poor countries.

Italy, the fourth largest country in Europe in terms of economic output and population, is exposed to major calamities, such as earthquakes, landslides and floods.

Floods are the most common natural hazard in the country. They are also difficult to insure due to the difficulty of assessing the risk. Today, insurance companies are moving to close this "gap," thanks to technological progress, the use of topography and better risk modeling.

Allianz Italy is one of those insurers. To add flood to their existing portfolio of earthquake and fire covers for small and medium-sized enterprises, they turned to Swiss Re. We used our state-of-the-art flood risk modeling and underwriting expertise in natural catastrophes and helped launch the expansion last year.

With Allianz, we responded to the challenge of providing cover for a very complex peril – helping to close an important protection gap in the heart of Europe.