Suncorp Group CEO Patrick Snowball has told UK insurers the current economic climate has highlighted the need for insurers to be able to respond to “globally transmitted systemic change” and “irregular shocks” rather than simply focusing on national issues.

In his keynote address to the British Insurance Summit in London last week, Mr Snowball talked about the need for both global and national perspectives while still running a profitable business.

He describes the current economic, political and environmental issues as a “perfect storm” and says businesses need to be able to adapt to continuous change by being “resilient and flexible rather than simply adaptable”.

And he says adapting to government interest and involvement in the insurance industry is one of the challenges that must be met.

“Rather than bemoan the intrusion of government and regulators, I believe we need to be more active in educating stakeholders about the national value of our industry and the factors that are most likely to erode that value,” he says.

On this front, Suncorp has “stepped up” its “advocacy and leadership in regard to key industry issues in Australia and New Zealand”.

“You cannot have a strong organisation or industry if the shocks they encounter are compounded by political opportunism, denial and poor policy,” Mr Snowball said.

“We need to work with governments to avoid the situation where they manage the insurable risks and the private sector is left with what are becoming uninsurable risks.”