The German flood disaster of summer 2002 highlighted a dilemma concerning insurance against damages caused by natural forces. On the one hand, mindful of the rising incidence of natural disasters, private insurance companies are increasingly withdrawing coverage against natural catastrophes,...

This paper discusses the problem of crowding out of insurance by co-existing governmental relief programs—the so-called ‘charity hazard’—in the context of different institutional schemes of governmental disaster relief in Austria and Germany. We test empirically whether an assured...

The efficiency of market-determined risk classification in automobile insurance is a lasting matter of controversy. It can be traced back to the 1950s (Muir, 1957) and received broad economic attention in the 1980s when spiralling car insurance premiums in the US were blamed on tariff...

It is well established that adaptation and technological investment in each case may serve as a commitment device in international climate politics. This paper for the first time analyzes the combined impact of these two strategic variables on global mitigation within a noncooperative framework...

Funding developing countries' climate policies after Cancun (COP16) has a dual goal: firstly, to support mitigation of developing countries in order to sustain the two-degree pathway of stabilising the global mean temperature; secondly, to empower the vulnerable countries in low-income regions to...

The strategy of adaptation to climate change has become a central topic within the UNFCCC negotiations in recent years. On the national level, adaptation plans are elaborated, and on the international level, the need for funding adaptation in developing countries is discussed. This tendency...

The paper outlines the role of insurance as an economic policy tool that can be used to address the issue of climate change. The magnitude of potential loss, the adverse social and economic consequences for millions of people and considerable fiscal strain imposed on government budgets by...

Handlungsempfehlungen (deutsch): Gegenseitigkeit und Vertrauen können in verschiedener Weise den Abschluss internationaler Klimaschutzvereinbarungen fördern: 1. Klimapolitische Instrumente sollten derart gestaltet werden, dass sie mit dem Prinzip der Gegenseitigkeit („Reziprozität“)...