Rainfall index insurance provides a payout based on measured local rainfall during key phases of the agricultural season, and in principle can help rural households diversify a key source of idiosyncratic risk. This paper describes basic features of rainfall insurance contracts offered in India...

After the flooding in 2002 European governments provided billions of Euros of financial assistance to their citizens. Although there is no doubt that solidarity and some sort of assistance is reasonable, the question arises why these damages were not sufficiently insured. One explanation why...

The large-scale disasters that have occurred since 2001 suggest that we have entered a new era of catastrophes. We are more vulnerable to extreme events as a result of the increasing concentration of population and activities in exposed areas of the country. The question is not whether...

How does catastrophe-risk awareness affect selection patterns in catastrophe insurance markets? Catastrophe insurance is often provided by government entities and frequently involves substantial cross-subsidization between people facing very different levels of risk, which could generate adverse...