More than one in five Australians face significant vulnerability, with financial insecurity emerging as the major factor influencing their ability to withstand and recover from shocks, according to a new study released by Zurich.
The Australian Resilience Index, developed by Zurich in collaboration with Mandala Partners, RedBridge Group and Accent Research, draws on two million proprietary and public data points to assess resilience across four dimensions:
- Financial Resilience, including savings, insurance coverage and superannuation balances
- Health Resilience, including physical & mental health conditions, access to care and lifestyle factors
- Social Resilience, such as crime rates, community participation and belonging
- Environmental Resilience, including planning, infrastructure and service availability
…insurance coverage emerged as a key contributor
The research found overall resilience was most closely associated with financial wellbeing, while insurance coverage emerged as a key contributor.
Communities with insurance penetration of at least 50% were found to be five times more likely to demonstrate higher financial resilience and four times more likely to record higher health resilience.
Significant differences across communities
Almost 2,500 local areas were assessed, with Cottesloe in Western Australia identified as the country’s most resilient community. The Tiwi Islands in the Northern Territory recorded the lowest overall resilience.
…financial resilience rises sharply with age
The research also found financial resilience rises sharply with age and is substantially stronger among men, while younger Australians aged 15–34 recorded the highest health resilience but the lowest social resilience.
Insurance and resilience
Zurich CEO Justin Delaney said insurance sits at the intersection of the four dimensions measured by the Index, supporting financial stability following shocks as well as health and wellbeing through prevention and recovery services.
Delaney said Zurich intended to use the data and insights to better understand pressures facing customers and communities and to continue evolving its propositions around prevention, early intervention and long-term protection.
He added that the Index could also contribute to policy discussions and assist in targeting public and private investment, while providing greater insight into the potential benefits of earlier intervention at both community and individual levels.
Click here to access Zurich’s Australian Resilience Index.
