Helvetia Adjusts Insurance Rates Following Severe Weather Damage

The Swiss insurance company Helvetia has announced adjustments to its homeowners' and household insurance rates in Austria. This decision comes in response to the increasing number of claims resulting from natural disasters over recent years. According to the company, the flood risk will now be assessed during the initial proposal stage, rather than at the point of policy issuance, utilizing the HORA maps provided by the government to evaluate these risks.

While the new rates do not explicitly increase the flood risk premiums, the spokesperson clarified that a comprehensive review of all risk premiums is underway with the product relaunch, which could potentially result in increases or decreases. However, specific figures regarding potential risk surcharges remain undisclosed due to internal calculations.

Typically, insurance payouts for flood damage are capped at a few thousand euros. Helvetia currently sets its standard coverage for flood-related damages at EUR10,000, but policyholders have the option to raise this limit to EUR30,000 or even EUR50,000, provided their property is not located in a high-risk flood zone, where flooding is statistically expected to occur every 30 years. The spokesperson emphasized that Helvetia values transparent coverage, allowing customers to see their property's HORA zone during the offer process, thus enabling them to increase their coverage if desired.

In light of the escalating weather extremes attributed to climate change, Helvetia, along with the broader insurance sector, advocates for a political solution that would mandate flood insurance for all. This would require individuals, even those outside designated flood risk areas, to obtain flood coverage. Currently, damages from natural disasters are often compensated through public funds. After the severe flooding in autumn 2024, financial assistance for flood victims was increased from 20% to 50% of the incurred damages, and the disaster fund was bolstered to EUR1 billion. The unprecedented rainfall resulted in damages amounting to billions of euros.

Northern Austria was particularly hard hit, with over 19,700 damage claims leading to payouts of approximately EUR337 million. Additional damages to infrastructure, including roads and embankments, further compounded the financial toll, impacting transportation services such as ÖBB and Wiener Linien. Insured losses from this event were estimated by the insurance association to be between EUR600 million and EUR700 million.