The Insurance Bureau of Canada, a trade organization representing Canadian P&C insurers, has selected LexisNexis Risk Solutions to develop new flood maps.
After record flood losses in 2013, and recognizing an increasing threat from climate change, IBC wants to more accurately quantify the extent of flood risk and exposure in Canada to help members and other stakeholders explore the industry’s role in mitigating flood risk through the creation of a national flood program.
LexisNexis Risk Solutions will lead the development of a new set of flood hazard maps and property-level exposure data, leveraging Map View, its risk assessment and exposure management technology. A key component of this initiative is the creation of all new pluvial and fluvial flood maps for Canada. These new models, produced by LexisNexis partner, JBA Risk Management, will leverage local river, rainfall, snowmelt and higher resolution Digital Terrain Model (DTM) datasets, resulting in completely updated river flow and rainfall estimates based upon a much more detailed hydrological study where snowmelt is now explicitly modelled.
“Extreme weather events driven by climate change are increasing in frequency and severity,” said Don Forgeron, President and CEO, IBC. “Storms and flooding in recent years have turned extreme. That’s why mitigation and preparedness are vital and why IBC is stepping up to collaborate on a national flood program. IBC believes the backbone to good policy is solid research and data. That’s why we are happy to have formed a partnership with LexisNexis Risk Solutions to develop the program, which will help appraise risk and prioritize mitigation efforts.”
