The weather can negatively impact the insurance sector in terms of revenue generation. Adverse weather events comprising lightning, hail, flooding, damaging wind and drought can result in increase claims and financial losses as follows:
Weather and climate related information can benefit the insurance sector in the following ways:
Weather Forecasts
Site-specific extended weather outlook, as well as high-resolution 3-day forecasts for short-term planning or possible adjustments
Storm Forecasts and alerts
Warning and alerts of approaching storms
Hail
Hail alerts and verification of historical hail events
Lightning
Lightning alerts and verification of historical lightning events
Rainfall analysis report
Rainfall analysis report
CAELUM database
Provides a list of reported weather related disasters.
Seasonal forecasts
Temperature and rainfall outlook for the next 3-months
Climate Change
Climate Change projections for long term planning
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Climate Change Reference Atlas (CCRA) |
Provide a Hyperlink: https://www.weathersa.co.za/home/climatechangeatlas https://www.weathersa.co.za/home/extremeclimateindices
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Additional Information |
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Data Type |
NC, Shapefiles, Jpeg |
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File Format |
Shapefiles, Jpeg |
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Frequency |
5 years cycle |
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Thematic Application Area/ Target Market |
· All Sectors |
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Coverage |
National, Provincial and municipality |
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Dissemination Channels |
Product reports are available on the website. Raw data for further value add are available upon request and commercial terms |
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Product Benefits/Impact to end – user |
The Climate Change Reference Atlas provides a general impression of climate change scenarios compared to the present climate, at a high resolution of ~4 km. These scenarios are for various periods and emission scenarios and can assist with initial long-term planning for all climate-sensitive sectors. The information can serve as a preparatory phase for more in-depth future scenario research, relevant to a specific sector. |
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Climate Data (CD) |
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Additional Information |
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Data Type |
Text |
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File Format |
MS Excel, MSWord, Pdf |
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File Size |
Request dependant |
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Frequency |
Upon request |
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Thematic Application Area/Target Market |
· All Sectors |
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Coverage |
South Africa |
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Dissemination Channels |
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Product Benefits/Impact to end – user |
Long-term analysis, understanding of weather and climate of the area, verification of weather conditions in the area. |
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Specialized Lightning Report (SLR) |
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Additional Information |
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Data Type |
Text or Excel |
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Data Formant |
Report PDF or MSWord |
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File Size |
Small /Medium |
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Frequency |
Upon request |
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Thematic Application Area/Target Market |
· All sectors |
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Coverage |
South Africa |
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Dissemination Channels |
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Product Benefits/Impact to end – user |
To accurately determine the position and strength of a ground strike. Used to validate insurance claims. |
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Lightning Verification Report (LVR) |
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Additional Information |
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Data Type |
Text |
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File Format |
MS Word, Ms Excel |
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File Size |
Small |
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Frequency |
Upon request |
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Thematic Application Area/Target Market |
· Private Individuals · Legal · Insurance |
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Coverage |
South Africa |
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Dissemination Channels |
· Digital platforms |
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Product Benefits/Impact to end – user |
Confirming if there was lightning or not within a given area, mainly used to process and to validate insurance claims. |
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Lightning Fault Analysis Report (LFAR) |
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Additional Information |
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Data Type |
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File Format |
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File Size |
Small |
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Frequency |
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Thematic Application Area/Target Market |
· Lightning consultant firms · Insurance |
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Coverage |
South Africa |
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Dissemination Channels |
· Digital Platform |
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Product Benefits/Impact to end – user |
The report is beneficial for users interested in analyzing the lightning strokes potentially responsible for causing damage. The report maps provide properties of all the lightning strokes that has a 99% confidence ellipse intersecting the area of interest. |
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Lightning Ground Flash Density (LGFD) |
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Additional Information |
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Data Type |
ASCII |
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File Format |
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File Size |
Small |
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Frequency |
Annually |
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Thematic Application Area/Target Market |
· Insurance · Lightning consultant firms |
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Coverage |
South Africa |
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Dissemination Channels |
· Digital Platform |
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Product Benefits/Impact to end – user |
Provides the number of lightning flashes per square kilometre on average per year. The product is mainly used to determine lightning prone areas. Insurance companies use the products for risk assessments when setting premiums. It is also used by companies selling lightning protection systems and government department for planning purposes when rolling out lightning rod systems in lightning prone areas. |
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Caelum |
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Additional Information |
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Data Type |
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File Format |
Word, JPEG, PDF, Video |
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File Size |
Small |
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Frequency |
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Thematic Application Area/Target Market |
· Insurance · Disaster Management centres · Academia · Consulting firms |
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Coverage |
South Africa |
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Dissemination Channels |
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Product Benefits/Impact to end – user |
· The publication provides a list of weather-related disasters used by researchers for case studies, verification studies, etc. · Used in mitigation and adaptation studies by researchers, consultants, government, etc. It is also used by disaster managers for planning purposes. |
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Hail Verification Report (HVR) |
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Additional Information |
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Data Type |
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File Format |
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File Size |
Small |
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Frequency |
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Thematic Application Area/Target Market |
· Insurance · Legal |
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Coverage |
South Africa |
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Dissemination Channels |
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Product Benefits/Impact to end – user |
The product confirms if there was hail or not within a given area, mainly used to process and validate insurance claims. |
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Lightning Climatology (LC) |
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Additional Information |
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Data Type |
Images can be provided in standard formats such as GIF, PNG, JPEG or in documents such as Word and PDF. An option is also available to provide data in text files, Excel, or shapefile format. |
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File Size |
25 kb – 20+ mb dependent on format. |
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Frequency |
Annual |
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Thematic Application Area/Target Market |
· Insurance · Lightning Protection · Energy · Construction · Forestry · Transportation · And other sectors concerned with lightning distributions.
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Coverage |
National and can be tailor-made at the provincial, municipality or point location level.
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Dissemination Channels |
Information is typically provided by email but can be provided by other dissemination channels as requested by clients. |
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Product Benefits/Impact to end – user |
Lightning climatological information provides important insights into the typical distribution and characteristics of lightning across South Africa which is extremely valuable for lightning protection standards, risk assessments, and planning. |
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Lightning Stroke Detection (LSD) |
http://cyclone-web.saws.co.za/ncastweb/lightning_5mn.html
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Additional Information |
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Data Type |
ASCII |
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File Format |
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File Size |
Small |
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Frequency |
1 minute |
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Thematic Application Area/Target Market |
· DRR · Insurance · Schools · Aviation · Sport and recreation · Mining · Forestry · Transportation · Energy · Construction |
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Coverage |
South Africa |
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Dissemination Channels |
· Web portal · Mobile APP · Social media |
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Product Benefits/Impact to end – user |
The product provides gridded near-real-time lightning maps to monitor lightning activity anywhere in South Africa with the capability for clients to view the current location of lightning storm cells and the intensity thereof. This product can be used for decision making to stop activities when a storm approaches and to resume activities once the threat is over. |
