Italy is especially sensitive to weather events linked to climate change, but it does not take adequate precautions. Suffice it to state that since 2013, Italy has suffered 37 billion euros in climate change damages, of which only 5 billion were insured, resulting in a "protection gap" of 87%. These are some of the figures in the analysis by reinsurer Swiss Re, which ranks 36 countries and identifies the most susceptible. The problem of vulnerability to the effects of climate change is not limited to Italy. Floods, tropical cyclones, thunderstorms, and storms currently inflict $200 billion in losses annually, a figure that is expected to climb. In absolute terms, the United States bears the brunt of the devastation, with $97 billion in damages. However, Italy has a poor record: in 2023, it was the European country most impacted by thunderstorms and storms, as indicated by flooding in Emilia-Romagna and hail in Northern Italy, which resulted in insured losses of more than $3 billion, the most ever recorded on the Peninsula.
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