Insurance, liability and compensation funds
60 cases in 36 countries, 1929–2026. Most cases: United States (22), United Kingdom (6), Venezuela (4), Spain (3), Mexico (3).
Venezuela 2026 twin earthquakes insurance gap
Twin earthquakes struck Venezuela on 24 June 2026. Munich Re put the loss at about 30 billion dollars with under 1 billion insured; UNDP and UNDRR gave damage estimates of 6.7 and about 37 billion dollars.
DUAL launches insurance for biodiversity net gain units, first at Bunloit estate
DUAL (Howden MGA) launched what its release describes as cover for biodiversity net gain and carbon units, first used on Highlands Rewilding's Bunloit estate. Commentators said 30-year nature outcomes are hard to insure and that the cover must exclude losses caused by landowner failure.
Bahamas debt-for-nature swap
In November 2024 the Bahamas took part in a US$300 million debt-for-nature transaction arranged by Standard Chartered, with a partial guarantee from the Inter-American Development Bank and US$30 million of insurance from AXA XL. The Nature Conservancy was a named participant.
Rio Grande do Sul flood claims paid reach R$6 billion as farm insurance subsidy is cut
Compensation paid after the 2024 Rio Grande do Sul floods reached about R$6 billion, against an estimated R$100 billion total loss, while the government blocked R$445 million of rural insurance subsidy for 2025. The cited sources do not describe effects on nature.
Spain's flood insurance pool paid over 4 billion euros for DANA
Spain's state-backed insurance pool had paid more than 4 billion euros for claims from the 2024 DANA floods in Valencia, according to the government. A claim that dam demolitions or cloud seeding caused the floods was found unsupported by the fact-checker Maldita.
Turkish public quake pool paid TL 39.7 billion after 2023 earthquakes
DASK, Türkiye's public earthquake insurance pool, paid TL 39.7 billion on about 630,000 notifications after the February 2023 quakes. Insurance cover was about 56% nationally and 39.9% in Diyarbakır; the cited sources do not connect the scheme to nature or land use.
Morocco's catastrophe fund expected reinsurance after the 2023 El Haouz quake
After the 2023 El Haouz earthquake, Morocco's catastrophe fund (FSEC) was reported to expect 250 to 300 million dollars from Gallagher Re, and the fund had not been used for uninsured losses. In 2025 the government planned to raise the solidarity levy on premiums, a cost that Hespress reported is passed on to insured vehicle owners.
Farmers Insurance ends about 100,000 Florida home, auto and umbrella policies
Farmers Insurance stopped its Farmers-branded home, auto and umbrella policies in Florida in July 2023, citing risk exposure. Florida's state-run Citizens Property Insurance peaked at about 1.4 million policies and fell below 400,000 by December 2025; the sources do not link the exit to any environmental outcome.
Galápagos debt-for-nature swap used US$656 million of US political risk insurance
Ecuador bought back bonds with a face value of about US$1.6 billion and issued a US$656 million Galápagos bond insured by the US Development Finance Corporation. Yale Journal put the reduction in external debt at about 2.16 per cent, against conservation funding of at least US$12 million a year.
TNC Hawaii coral reef parametric insurance
In 2022 The Nature Conservancy bought a wind-triggered insurance policy for Hawaii's coral reefs, paid for by donor grants. It was triggered for the first time in August 2026.
France's clay-shrinkage drought claims: one in four victims compensated
Public Sénat reported that clay-shrinkage (RGA) drought claims cost 2.4 to 2.9 billion euros in 2022, and that one in four victims were compensated. A Senate record says the CatNat surcharge rose from 12 to 20 percent from 1 January 2025.
Only Ghana has an announced Global Shield guarantee as 17 countries wait
By November 2024 only Ghana had an announced Global Shield guarantee, with 17 countries waiting and a German contribution of about 170 million euros reported. The cited sources do not describe any effect on nature.
Jamaica catastrophe bonds and the Hurricane Melissa payout
Jamaica bought hurricane cover through World Bank catastrophe bonds and a Caribbean risk pool. The 2021 bond paid nothing; the 2024 bond paid its full US$150 million after Hurricane Melissa in 2025.
MAR Fund Mesoamerican Reef parametric insurance
A parametric insurance policy covers protected reef areas along the Mesoamerican Reef in Mexico, Belize, Guatemala and Honduras. Its only documented payout, US$175,000, followed Hurricane Lisa in November 2022.
Net-Zero Insurance Alliance collapse and insurers’ fossil underwriting
The UN-convened Net-Zero Insurance Alliance, launched in 2021, lost its major members in 2023 and was closed in April 2024. Reports in the same period recorded continued insurance of coal, oil and gas projects, including by Lloyd’s market members.
Mexico IBRD catastrophe bonds (Otis, Polo) and FONDEN abolition
Mexico buys storm protection through catastrophe bonds issued by the World Bank's IBRD. The bond paid part of the cover after Hurricane Otis in 2023 and paid nothing after Hurricane Polo in 2026.
Israel tar spill, February 2021: unidentified tanker, IOPC Fund compensation and oiled turtles
Tar washed up along Israel's Mediterranean coast in February 2021. The 1992 IOPC Fund treated it as a spill of unidentified origin and authorised payment of admissible claims; the Michmoret rescue centre received 10 injured sea turtles in two days.
TotalEnergies’ Tilenga oil fields in Uganda: biodiversity claims and insurance
TotalEnergies is developing the Tilenga oil fields in Uganda and presents its biodiversity programme as a net gain. The cited sources record a 2022 insurance arrangement for the pipeline, but do not establish whether the biodiversity claims have been independently verified.
SEWA heat insurance paid nothing in 2023; Nagaland pilot paid nothing until 2025
India's SEWA heat insurance pilot paid nothing in 2023, and Nagaland's 2021 to 2023 extreme weather pilot paid nothing before its 2025 payouts, according to the cited sources. The cited sources do not describe any effect on nature.
MV Wakashio oil spill (Mauritius)
The MV Wakashio ran aground off Mauritius in 2020. Its owner sought to cap its liability under the LLMC regime; on 23 February 2026 the Supreme Court of Mauritius refused limitation for oil pollution claims.
Unpaid Venezuelan contributions to the IOPC Funds, 2019–2026
A contributor in Venezuela has not paid its levies to the 1992 Fund, which compensates victims of tanker oil spills worldwide, since May 2019. The IOPC Funds recorded £1,053,829 outstanding, plus £228,960 interest, on 1 September 2026; the contributor is not named.
Peru to receive US$60 million from Pacific Alliance catastrophe bond after Loreto quake
A magnitude 8.0 earthquake in Loreto triggered a US$60 million payout to Peru from a Pacific Alliance catastrophe bond, according to the finance ministry. The cited sources do not describe any conservation use of the money.
Coral reef parametric insurance, Quintana Roo
The state government of Quintana Roo, Mexico, has bought a wind-triggered insurance policy for coral reefs and beaches since 2019. Payouts followed Hurricane Delta in 2020 and Hurricane Beryl in 2024; none was recorded in 2021.
Wolverine World Wide PFAS, Rockford (Michigan)
Wolverine World Wide, whose Rockford, Michigan operations are linked in the cited sources to tannery PFAS from Scotchgard, sued its legacy insurers in December 2018. A federal court held in 2021 that they owed a duty to defend.
Sanchi tanker collision and condensate spill, East China Sea, 2018
On 6 January 2018 the Panama-flagged tanker Sanchi, carrying 136,000 tonnes of condensate loaded at Assaluyeh, collided with the Hong Kong-registered bulk carrier CF Crystal in the East China Sea, burned and sank on 14 January; three crew died and 29 were missing. The spokesperson of the National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC) said in January 2019 that insurers had paid US$50 million of US$256 million in claims.
Duke Energy coal ash insurance dispute
In 2017 Duke Energy sued about 30 insurers over coverage for coal ash cleanup liabilities estimated at $5.1 billion. Settlements with 23 insurers brought in about $418 million by August 2021; regulators separately allowed part of the cost to be passed to customers.
Florida Citizens depopulation and insurer affiliate profits
Florida's state-run insurer of last resort fell from about 1.4 million policies in 2023 to 293,772 in May 2026 as private insurers took policies over. A state regulator's internal analysis of 2017-19 showed insurers losing money while their affiliates earned more.
US National Flood Insurance Program debt and FEMA reinsurance
The US National Flood Insurance Program owed the Treasury USD 22.525 billion in March 2026. FEMA bought reinsurance in 2017 and a catastrophe bond in 2021 to transfer part of the program's flood risk to private capital.
India PMFBY crop insurance
India's government-subsidised crop insurance scheme, run through public and private insurers, has been described by the agriculture ministry and by critics with different premium and claims figures. The cited sources give no ecological assessment of the scheme.
Samarco Fundão dam collapse (Mariana): the settlement and the court cases
The Fundão tailings dam of Samarco, owned equally by Vale and BHP, collapsed at Mariana, Brazil, on 5 November 2015 and 19 people died. A R$170 billion agreement was signed in October 2024, and the English High Court found BHP liable in November 2025.
Refugio / Plains Line 901 oil spill (California)
A Plains All American pipeline released 2,934 barrels of oil in Santa Barbara County, California, in May 2015, 598 of them into the Pacific. Plains reported total costs of $870 million and lost an insurance arbitration in January 2025 over a $230 million class action settlement.
Rockhopper v. Italy (Ombrina Mare): the ICSID award and who financed it
A tribunal ordered Italy to pay Rockhopper Exploration EUR 190 million plus interest after Italy banned oil and gas activity within 12 miles of its coast. An ICSID committee annulled the award in 2025, and the claim was re-opened.
ARC drought insurance payout to Malawi
Malawi held African Risk Capacity drought insurance for the 2015/16 season. The model first estimated 20,594 people affected against about 2 million, and a USD 8.1 million payout came about nine months after the emergency declaration.
Mount Polley tailings dam failure
A tailings dam at the Mount Polley mine in British Columbia failed on 4 August 2014. In 2022 a court declared the limits of the operator's property insurance, and no criminal charges had been reported at the tenth anniversary.
Lac-Mégantic rail disaster (Quebec)
A runaway train carrying crude oil exploded in the centre of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, in July 2013, killing 47 people. The railway went bankrupt, about 25 parties funded a settlement of roughly C$440–460 million, and Canadian Pacific, which did not contribute, was not found liable by the Quebec courts.
Union Carbide asbestos insurance case
Argonaut Insurance and other insurers disputed cover for asbestos bodily-injury claims against Union Carbide, arguing the company expected or intended the harm. In 2012 a New York appeals court affirmed the striking of that defence.
MV Rak Carrier coal and oil spill (Mumbai)
A coal-laden ship went down about 20 nautical miles off Mumbai in August 2011, and oil and tar balls reached beaches as far as Raigad. The ship's Romanian insurer refused to pay for environmental damage; in 2016 India's National Green Tribunal ordered the owners to pay Rs 100 crore.
Fukushima nuclear damage compensation financing (Japan)
After the March 2011 Fukushima Daiichi accident, Japan financed compensation through government bonds to be repaid by utilities and electricity consumers. Courts acquitted three former TEPCO executives and, in 2025, overturned a shareholder judgment against four former executives.
BP Deepwater Horizon: the spill, the court cases and the recovery claims
An offshore rig drilling BP's Macondo exploration well exploded in the Gulf of Mexico on 20 April 2010, killing 11 workers; oil flowed for 87 days. BP pleaded guilty in a criminal case that carried $4 billion in payments and signed a $20.8 billion civil settlement paid until 2031; by the end of 2025, $2.44 billion of up to $8.8 billion set aside for natural resources had been spent.
TVA Kingston coal ash spill insurance
After the December 2008 coal ash spill at Kingston, TVA said its insurers denied cover; arbitration awards followed. Which insurer paid which award is not fully confirmed.
Kerch Strait storm, November 2007: Volgoneft 139 fuel-oil spill and sulphur-ship sinkings
On 11 November 2007 the tanker Volgoneft 139 broke in two in a storm in the Kerch Strait and fuel oil spilled; three sulphur-laden cargo ships sank in the same area. Russian courts awarded RUB 503.2 million in 2012; the IOPC 1992 Fund had paid RUB 337,734,596 by the end of 2018, and the insurer Ingosstrakh had paid one claimant.
Spain: environmental liability financial guarantee (EU Directive Art. 14)
The EU Environmental Liability Directive leaves it to each Member State whether to require operators to hold financial security for environmental damage. Spain is among the states that made it mandatory, with a cap of €20 million.
Tasman Spirit oil spill (Pakistan)
An oil spill at Karachi in July 2003 in a country that was not a member of the IOPC Funds. The ship's insurer declined to discuss compensation until the crew was released, after nine months in detention.
Amnesty reported BTC pipeline deal would compensate consortium over Turkish laws
A host government agreement for Turkey's section of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline provided for Turkey to compensate the consortium if laws Turkey applied elsewhere were applied along the route and disrupted it. Amnesty International said about 30,000 people would give up land rights.
Lead paint public nuisance insurance (Santa Clara)
After a California public-nuisance suit over lead paint was settled in 2019, courts in California, New York and Ohio gave differing rulings on whether insurers had to cover the companies' payments into the abatement fund.
Aznalcóllar mine spill (Spain)
A 1998 accident at the Aznalcóllar / Los Frailes mine in Spain, operated by Boliden Apirsa, produced claims of about 40 billion pesetas. In 2023 a Seville court rejected the Andalusian government's €89.9 million claim against Boliden; in 2025 the government approved the last permit to reopen the mine.
Nissos Amorgos tanker spill, Gulf of Venezuela, 1997, and the US$60 million environmental-damage judgment
The Greek tanker Nissos Amorgos ran aground in the Maracaibo Channel on 28 February 1997 and spilled an estimated 3,600 tonnes of crude oil. Venezuelan courts upheld a US$60 million environmental-damage claim by the State against the master, shipowner and Gard Club, while the 1971 Fund considered the claim inadmissible; payment to the State is not on record.
Plate Princess spill, Puerto Miranda, Lake Maracaibo, 1997, and the fishermen's judgment
The tanker Plate Princess spilled some 3.2 tonnes of crude at the Puerto Miranda terminal on Lake Maracaibo in 1997. Venezuelan courts ordered the 1971 Fund, which was not a defendant, to pay about £57.2 million to two fishermen's unions; the IOPC recorded that no compensation was paid and the Fund was dissolved on 31 December 2014.
Insurers sue Asarco in New Jersey over cover for environmental liabilities
Insurers led by INA and California Union sought a declaration of no cover for Asarco's environmental matters. The cited sources do not give the final outcome of the case.
Love Canal (New York)
Insurers of Hooker, later part of the Occidental group, went to court over Love Canal coverage from 1980. A federal court found Hooker negligent but not reckless in 1994, and Occidental paid New York State in 1994 and the US government $129 million in 1995.
Love Canal: appeals court upholds insurer's pollution exclusion in plumber case
In 2017 the Second Circuit held that a pollution exclusion barred a plumber's insurance cover for work that disturbed Love Canal sediment. Earlier insurer suits and payments linked to Occidental and Hooker are also covered.
Monsanto/Bayer PCB and Roundup insurance suit v AIG
In December 2025 Bayer sued the insurer AIG in St. Louis County, Missouri, over cover for more than $1.9 billion of PCB settlements and more than $10 billion of Roundup settlements. AIG's grounds for refusing are not public and the case was pending.
New York appeals court sides with AIG units in PFAS coverage dispute
A New York appeals court ruled in January 2022 that pollution exclusions in policies issued by AIG companies barred any duty to defend Tonoga against claims over PFOA and PFOS discharges. The state had designated the Petersburg plant a state Superfund site after PFOA reached the municipal water supply.
Montrose DDT insurance case
Montrose Chemical, a DDT producer, sued its liability insurers in California over cover for the contamination its operations caused. The state Supreme Court ruled against the insurers in 1995 and again in 2020, and the industry then added a clause to exclude damage known before a policy.
Bikini Atoll resettlement trust fund
A trust fund set up by the US Congress for the people displaced by nuclear tests at Bikini Atoll fell from about $60 million in 2018 to $89,002 on 30 June 2024. The Bikini council and four individuals have sued the fund's manager in Delaware; the manager's position is not in the cited sources.
Ventron/Morton mercury, Berry's Creek
A mercury-processing plant in Wood-Ridge, New Jersey, discharged effluent into Berry's Creek between 1929 and 1974. In 1993 the New Jersey Supreme Court sided with 21 insurers that had been sued over cleanup cover.
Mongolia index livestock insurance
Mongolia's index-based livestock insurance programme splits herd losses between herders, private insurers and the government. In the 2023–24 winter, 8.1 million animals were reported to have died; no payout figure.
California forest carbon projects burned (Verra buffer pool)
Wildfires burned forests enrolled in carbon-offset projects in California. Credits for the burned carbon were replaced from the registry's shared buffer pool, which the records reviewed say was largely used up.
Courts weigh insurance coverage for asbestos and PFAS liabilities in US cases
In a 1995 Second Circuit case, juries found National Gypsum did not expect or intend its asbestos injuries, and the known-loss defence was rejected except for claims filed before the policy was bought. In 2021 a federal court held that Wolverine World Wide's legacy insurers had a duty to defend it over PFAS discharges from its Rockford, Michigan tannery.
Nauru's phosphate fund falls from US$1.3 billion to US$0.3 billion
Nauru's phosphate fund fell from US$1.3 billion to US$0.3 billion, an April 2021 Devpolicy article reported. The cited sources do not say how the decline happened.