There was a piece of good news in the climate and sustainability space this month, as the global insurance protection gap, the difference between insured and total economic losses, fell to a record low in 2025, according to Swiss Re.
The reinsurer's research division reported that 49% of the $220bn in global natural catastrophe losses were insured in 2025.
"This is a clear indication that the insurance industry is playing its part in navigating global protection gaps," Swiss Re said.
However, this milestone is far from a definitive win. Swiss Re itself, along with many other voices over the past month, has stressed that significant challenges remain.
Swiss Re's group chief economist Jérôme Haegeli cautioned that the protection gap still persists and annual figures can be misleading depending on where disasters occur. For instance, the January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires saw high insurance penetration, with Swiss Re estimating $40bn in insured losses. In contrast, in many emerging economies, 80–90% of catastrophe losses typically remain uninsured.
Concerns are also becoming more acute at the national level. At the end of March, Australia's regulator warned that up to a quarter of homes could become uninsured by 2050, based on two climate scenarios covering five major home insurers and 10m properties.
As a result, calls for action are growing louder. Insurance climate group ClimateWise warned that future uninsurability would represent a policy failure of today. It also announced the development of an Insurability Readiness Matrix, designed to help insurers, regulators and governments identify when assets or regions are approaching insurability limits, and what interventions could help maintain coverage.
These concerns are increasingly spilling into political debate. In the US, two state politicians with key roles in insurance policy publicly expressed frustration with the non-life insurance industry, including on measures to mitigate property damage from natural catastrophes.
In other news, European progress on streamlining sustainability rules has continued. The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority has been active across a range of initiatives, including providing input on revisions to the European Sustainability Reporting Standards and delivering technical advice on the EU's green taxonomy.
Elsewhere, the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials continues to expand its footprint, with membership among insurers approaching 40.