ANZIIF backs ICA’s framework to strengthen disaster preparedness

Professional development resources released to support initiative

ANZIIF backs ICA’s framework to strengthen disaster preparedness

Catastrophe & Flood

By

The Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance (ANZIIF) has pledged its support for the Insurance Council of Australia’s (ICA) newly launched “Extreme Weather and Disaster Response Planning Guide.”

The guide is intended to serve as a framework for general insurers to develop more robust strategies for managing and responding to large-scale disasters.

The development of the guide follows the severe weather events of 2022, which caused widespread damage across New South Wales and South-East Queensland. These events, categorised as CAT221, triggered 244,000 claims and led to $6.16 billion in payouts as of mid-2024.

A review of the industry’s response to these events identified inconsistencies in disaster preparedness, with some insurers lacking adequate planning processes to handle the scale of such crises.

Extreme Weather and Disaster Response Planning Guide

The guide aims to address these gaps by encouraging insurers to establish clear disaster definitions, build governance frameworks to streamline decision-making, and implement communication strategies to enhance engagement with customers and stakeholders.

The ICA emphasised the importance of scalability, allowing insurers to tailor their plans based on the size of their operations, risk exposures, and specific customer needs.

ANZIIF supports the ICA’s guide

ANZIIF’s CEO, Katrina Shanks, highlighted the need for the industry to focus on professional development to better prepare for such events.

“Now is the time to upskill your insurance professionals, so they can be prepared for when a significant, extreme weather event occurs,” she said.

To support this initiative, ANZIIF has provided a range of professional development resources designed to help insurers strengthen their disaster response capabilities. These resources include:

These training tools, along with articles and whitepapers, are available to ANZIIF members and are aimed at helping professionals refine their disaster management strategies.

ANZIIF has also made publicly available its article, “Navigating Natural Catastrophes and Man-Made Risks,” which examines recent shifts in legislation and insurance policies influenced by natural disasters.

Key features of the guide

The ICA’s guide promotes continuous improvement through regular stress testing and scenario planning to address vulnerabilities in disaster response processes.

While the framework is not mandatory, it is designed to provide insurers with a practical starting point to meet growing community expectations around disaster management.

Aligned with the principles of the ICA Charter, the guide also underscores the importance of collaboration and community engagement at all stages of disaster planning and response. This approach aims to create consistency across the industry while allowing flexibility for insurers to adapt the framework to their specific circumstances.

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