Managing the uncertainty
Tornadoes and large hailstorms can be very local and unpredictable, destroying buildings on one side of a street while leaving the other side untouched.
This can make it difficult to assess risks or take business decisions, such as how much to invest in storm protection, or what type of insurance to buy.
The areas at risk of experiencing a severe convective storm are likely to expand as local climates change. Global warming is expected to cause more warm moist air and atmospheric instability – ideal conditions for the formation of severe convective storms.
We can help you prepare and protect your assets from the risks of severe convective storms.
How we can help you address severe convective storms
Our risk consultants and analytics specialists can help your organization overcome these challenges by pinpointing risks and probable losses at site-specific level.
Hazard assessments
With hazard mapping tools such as WTW’s Global Peril Diagnostic, we can identify whether a specific location is at risk from severe convective storms, based on accurate geolocation information and up to date storm data.
From this and a further detailed hazard assessment, including reviewing previous historical severe convective storms and literature, we are able to understand the hazard in depth and further assess how this will likely impact the site.
Catastrophe modeling
Based on primary information such as latitude and longitude, construction type, and secondary information such as equipment bracing and construction quality, models quantify the probable average annual loss and maximum losses from a portfolio level and at individual locations.
This can help you make better decisions about risk transfer options and insurance limits.
Once your severe convective storm risk has been assessed, our natural catastrophe specialists provide WTW’s property brokers with information and support to create the best placements for our clients, either as standalone cover for severe convective storms or as part of a global multi-peril program. We also support client programs by helping to reinsure individual layers of risk through our facultative team.
Risk engineering and site surveys
If needed, we can survey a site in person to undertake a more detailed review on roof materials, construction type, number of floors and roof geometry to accurately assess vulnerability and provide a more granular picture of risk and potential losses.
Our risk engineers can identify a range of mitigation options to reduce your risk from severe convective storms and minimize the impact if one occurs.
They can also perform a cost-benefit analysis of each option to help you decide which measures are best to reduce your risks and provide adaptation recommendations to help increase your resilience to a changing climate.
Parametric solutions for severe convective storms
Our alternative risk transfer team can help you design unique parametric solutions for severe convective storm risks. A set amount is paid when wind speed or rain from a storm reaches an agreed level at a location. There is no lengthy loss adjustment period. Once the measurement is verified, you can receive payment, supporting cash flow in the aftermath of a catastrophe.
Parametric solutions can be either an alternative to traditional insurance or as an infill for gaps in property programs, such as non-damage business interruption or large deductibles.
Get in touch
Talk to our specialists to discover a smarter way to assess, mitigate, or transfer your severe convective storm risks. Get in touch with our specialists listed at the top of this page.
Disclosure
WTW offers insurance-related services through its appropriately licensed and authorised companies in each country in which WTW operates. For further authorisation and regulatory details about our WTW legal entities, operating in your country, please refer to our WTW website. It is a regulatory requirement for us to consider our local licensing requirements.
