JBA launches new 'probabilistic' global flood model to tackle coverage gaps

Flood risk modeller JBA Risk Management has launched an innovative probabilistic global flood model, which will allow re/insurers to model river and surface water flood at 30m resolution.

JBA said the new global flood model aims to fill gaps in the currently available catastrophe models by eliminating the need to embed assumptions, and for the first time enables consistent comparison of loss across country and continental borders.

“The Global Flood Model opens up a whole world of new opportunity," explains Stephen Hutchings, head of modelling at JBA Risk Management. "Firstly, it presents users with a probabilistic flood model for any country and thereby eliminates the coverage gap. This is a huge step forward. Secondly, the system is unprecedented in its flexibility, enabling users to customise the model to create the view of risk most relevant to their portfolio.”

Dickie Whitaker, CEO of Oasis, commented: “JBA Risk Management has taken a bold new approach in overcoming the challenges of creating a global flood model. This is a significant development which we hope will be transformative for the industry. Its compatibility with Oasis is a key benefit, making the model easily accessible to the market, and allowing users to model other perils alongside flood.”

Jane Toothill, director at JBA Risk Management, added: “Gaps in global coverage, often in important flood-prone regions, have proved costly for (re)insurers and the market has long been demanding consistent and transparent global data. We knew we had to think differently in order to overcome the challenges of creating a global flood model and JBA’s FLY was the technological breakthrough we needed. This is a really exciting new direction for the modelling industry.”

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