In New South Wales Alone, More Than 700,000 Properties At Risk Of Becoming Uninsurable As Climate Collapse Continues
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The analysis, from Sydney-based company Climate Valuation, looks at a range of factors to calculate risk categories. It uses a measure that captures the costs of expected extreme weather and climate-related damage relative to the replacement cost of the average home. Climate Valuation lists 86 suburbs across the country where more than 80 per cent of properties are deemed “high risk”. These are called “critical risk zones”. “That’s not just an ad hoc property here or there, that’s a whole suburb where 80 per cent of the properties are basically either uninsurable or becoming uninsurable,” Climate Valuation CEO Karl Mallon says.
These figures are based on future modelling of climate change known as the “high emissions scenario” — where scientists assume little curbing of emissions and greenhouse gas and CO2 levels continue to rise. Climate Valuation has also modelled the risk based on a moderate or medium emissions scenario and a low emissions scenario.
The research looks at the risk of damage from extreme weather including flooding, bushfires, coastal inundation, extreme wind events and cyclones and how these risks are expected to get worse as temperatures warm. Fire and riverine flooding are the most significant hazards in these at-risk suburbs, with some exposed to both.
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And in a sign this problem goes beyond the collective hip pocket, key industry players are warning the bedrock of the economy is at risk. “Entire regions are becoming uninsurable,” Allianz Global board member Günther Thallinger warned in an article on LinkedIn last month. “A house that cannot be insured cannot be mortgaged. No bank will issue loans for uninsurable property. Credit markets freeze. “This is a climate-induced credit crunch.”
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https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-04-15/climate-change-pushing-up-insurance-risk-data-shows/105154662