Zurich builds climate change resilience services with new role

Zurich Insurance Group has reinforced its Climate Change Resilience Services team with the appointment of Belinda Bates as senior risk consultant climate change in commercial insurance.

The insurer said that the newly created role reinforces its expertise and capabilities in climate change resilience services.

Bates will join the Risk Engineering team and will be working with Amar Rahman, Global Natural Hazards Practice leader and its underwriting team. She will have responsibility for further developing and deploying the company’s climate change resilience services.

Before joining Zurich, Bates was a consultant in financial risk management at EY. She holds an undergraduate degree in mathematics from the University of Oxford, a master’s degree in atmosphere ocean & climate from the University of Reading and a PhD in natural hazards modelling from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology at Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland.

James Shea, CEO Commercial Insurance, said: “Risk management tools that can help businesses quantify the impact of climate change are high in demand, as climate change-related risks have increased in frequency and severity. Businesses recognize the need for a comprehensive resilience approach that considers the changing environments in which they operate, and which helps them prepare for potential future challenges.”

Zurich’s Climate Change Resilience Services provide businesses with advice, tools and insights to identify, assess, mitigate and adapt to current and future climate change risks.