Hurricane Helene Exposes Insurers’ Climate Hypocrisy

The document examines the intersection of the climate crisis and the US insurance system, focusing on the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in North Carolina. It highlights a disconnect where insurers seek significant rate hikes—up to 99% in some coastal areas—despite historical profitability, while many homeowners remain uninsured for flood damage. The authors argue that the insurance industry exacerbates the climate crisis by investing over $500 billion in fossil fuel-related assets and underwriting fossil fuel projects, thereby profiting from the drivers of the extreme weather that leads to higher insurance claims.

• Hurricane Helene's rainfall was intensified by climate change, dumping approximately 20 trillion gallons of water on Florida, the Carolinas, Georgia, and Tennessee, which represents a 50 percent increase in rainfall compared to a scenario without climate change.
• In North Carolina, the North Carolina Rate Bureau (NCRB) has proposed a homeowners insurance rate hike of 42 percent, with potential increases reaching 99 percent for coastal regions, despite the industry being profitable nearly every year for the last decade except 2018.
• A significant gap exists in flood insurance coverage in the hardest-hit areas of Western North Carolina, where only 1 in 200 homes have flood insurance, leaving many homeowners without payouts because standard policies typically cover wind but not flooding.
• The insurance industry facilitates the climate crisis through substantial financial ties to fossil fuels, with US insurers holding more than $500 billion in fossil fuel-related assets and global insurers collecting $21 billion in premiums for underwriting fossil fuel projects in 2022.

APA

Fenlock, L., Slidders, C., & Reisch, N. (2024). Hurricane Helene Exposes Insurers’ Climate Hypocrisy. Center for International Environmental Law. https://www.ciel.org/hurricane-helene-exposes-insurers-climate-hypocrisy/

Chicago

Fenlock, Lindsay, Charles Slidders, and Nikki Reisch. Hurricane Helene Exposes Insurers’ Climate Hypocrisy. Center for International Environmental Law, 2024. https://www.ciel.org/hurricane-helene-exposes-insurers-climate-hypocrisy/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Fenlock |first1=Lindsay |last2=Slidders |first2=Charles |last3=Reisch |first3=Nikki |title=Hurricane Helene Exposes Insurers’ Climate Hypocrisy |publisher=Center for International Environmental Law |date=7 October 2024 |url=https://www.ciel.org/hurricane-helene-exposes-insurers-climate-hypocrisy/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{fenlock2024hurricane, author = {Fenlock, Lindsay and Slidders, Charles and Reisch, Nikki}, title = {{Hurricane Helene Exposes Insurers’ Climate Hypocrisy}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2024}, month = oct, url = {https://www.ciel.org/hurricane-helene-exposes-insurers-climate-hypocrisy/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }