Newly appointed Suncorp CEO Steve Johnston has called for urgent action to address the impact of climate change on extreme weather events.

Working with governments to “make communities and properties more resilient” is the priority, he told insuranceNEWS.com.au.

“As an insurance company we have a lot of actuarial data at our disposal and I don’t think there is any doubt that the frequency and intensity and severity of weather activity has increased over the past five to 10 years,” he said.

“We’ve had to increase all of our allowances for weather like the rest of the industry, and we’ve bought some more reinsurance cover to protect our balance sheet from the volatility that comes from those events.”

Mr Johnston says Suncorp has worked to reduce its own carbon footprint and “adjust our underwriting where appropriate to reflect community standards”. Suncorp has pledged to phase out thermal coal exposures by 2025.

Doing nothing is not an option, Mr Johnston says.

“If we just sit back and wait for these events to happen and pick up the pieces and mop up the damage, that becomes an unsustainable model in an environment where weather events are becoming more regular and more intense.

“We need to make sure when these events come, personal and community infrastructure can deal with it better.

“That will make communities more resilient over time and allow us to reflect that in our underwriting and pricing, and make insurance more sustainable.”