Insurance companies plan to force up premiums, on claims that climate change is costing them so much money – but the argument doesn’t seem to hold, at least according to the figures on payouts.

While companies are saying that the many damages due to climate change are forcing them to raise premiums, they are exaggerating the costs, according to Jyllands-Posten.

TyrgVesta CEO Stine Bosse, among others, says that insurance company costs as a result of storms, torrential rain and flooding are expected to increase into the billions – a cost that will be sent on to customers in higher premiums. The costs of weather-related damages will increase by between 25 and 50 percent, it is claimed.

A closer look at insurance payments in recent years, however, show that climate-related damage is only a minor part of total payouts on building and personal property claims.

In the 2006 – 2008 period, climate-related payouts for torrential rain and storms cost insurance companies on average DKK 618 million or seven percent of the average annual insurance payouts of DKK 8.8 billion.

Even if the most dramatic doomsday scenarios are taken into account, annual costs for the entire Danish insurance sector will only increase by DKK 300 million.