Coastal natural habitats cut flood loss frequency in Florida: Swiss Re

Coral reefs, mangrove swamps, salt marshes and other natural habitats reduced the frequency of insurance losses by around 50% in higher frequency-lower severity coastal flood events in Florida from 2009 to 2022, according to a Swiss Re Institute report issued Wednesday.

Just 1% of insurance policies reported a claim in a month with a flood event in coastal areas protected by natural habitats, compared with 2.8% in areas with less coastal protection, Swiss Re said.

“We consistently observed a reduction in loss frequency of between 42% and 65% in areas with high coastal protection” from natural habitats such as coral reefs, mangroves, salt marshes and seagrass meadows, the report said.

Such forms of coastal protection can contribute to the insurability of properties and communities, and insurance coverage is available to protect and restore these habitats in the event of a major storm, the report found.

A parametric Mexican coral reef hurricane cover developed by Swiss Re in 2022 covers reef restoration after events of a pre-defined wind speed, for instance.