Conjure up an image of people willingly, even enthusiastically, “marching into the jaws of destruction.”
Or of others simply “leaving their keys on the counter and just walking away” from their Houston homes. Doing so, in this case, in the wake of damages from Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and resulting property and casualty insurance premiums far too high to afford.
Getting the picture? Those are some of the visuals, the messages, included in the new original Yale Climate Connections “This is not Cool” video by independent videographer Peter Sinclair.
University of Michigan Ross School of Business professor Andrew Hoffman, interviewed in the video, recalls a recent survey of Society of Actuaries members. Climate change “popped to the top of the list of concerns among underwriters,” Hoffman says.
Several experts among those interviewed point to growing concerns over equity issues. “People with money are able to make those changes, make their homes more resilient,” says Lindsay Jacobson, a CNBC senior producer. Those with few resources often have few options other than to try to relocate.
Look for “sticker shock across the nation,” says CNBC business news correspondent Contessa Brewer.
MIT scientist Kerry Emanuel Points to “badly outdated” risk estimates dating back five decades or so and no longer reflecting current realities. He expresses concerns also that public policies, for instance in storm, wildfire, or flood prone areas, “subsidize people taking risks,” with resulting higher expenses ultimately falling on taxpayers generally.
