We’re pleased to announce the launch of Flood Foresight® for the re/insurance sector, a forecasting system that enables a more effective response to flood events.
Flood events are the most frequently occurring type of natural disaster. As a result, millions of people are affected by flooding every year. In the UK, one in five properties are at risk to flood and annual economic losses are estimated between £500 million and £1 billion, with the cost of flooding expected to increase across most of the UK under future climate scenarios.
Without the tools and forecasting information to provide reliable flood analytics before and during flood events, insurance companies often respond to flooding reactively with limited preemptive action to minimise damage.
Timing is critical not only for flood mitigation but also to effectively manage capital allocation and reinsurance, prioritise claims resources and manage the claims process. Flood Foresight is a system that provides near real-time and forecast rainfall and flood data for river flooding, giving users a reliable source of information to understand potential flooding.
The system provides rainfall forecasts accumulated over individual river catchments to allow the potential impact of heavy rainfall in river basins to be visualised. Alongside this, the rainfall can be benchmarked against historical conditions to highlight any unusually heavy rainfall that may produce flooding.
Flood Foresight also provides forecast and real-time flood footprints for river flooding at 30m resolution, which are updated as the flood event unfolds for the most realistic view of the risk. Flood footprints can be combined with exposure data in other systems to allow rapid estimation of loss across portfolios with increasing confidence over time, allowing timely and informed decision-making.
The system can be accessed through the web application with an intuitive user interface to visualise hazard data. Flood Foresight data can also be downloaded or integrated directly into existing risk management platforms for evaluation alongside exposure and claims information. For custom alerts, it is possible to configure early warning alerts and notifications via email.
Flood Foresight is developed by and provided in collaboration with JBA Consulting, part of the JBA Group. To find out more about Flood Foresight, please get in touch or check out our Flood Foresight executive briefing.
