Phil Cottle

Founder and MD
ForestRe Ltd.

Phil is the founder and MD at ForestRe Ltd. established in 2004 to bring risk expertise and rigour to the insurance of forestry and tree crops worldwide. Phil’s direct involvement with forestry insurance spans 30 years.

Based in the City of London, ForestRe has been engaged in a series of UK and EU Horizon and Space Agency projects to explore application of the latest Satellite data in improving risk measurement, modelling, profiling of forest risks for insurers. ‘Eco2Adapt’ is the latest; a consortium of 39 institutions to explore land-based asset management methods best-suited for adaptation to a warmer, more volatile climate. ForestRe being outside the EU, is financially supported in this by UK Innovate.

While awaiting research results from the 5-year project, ForestRe undertook to develop, with the global insurance sector, innovative insurance products that will reward adaptive management, especially against fire risk; the first of these (2025) is the ‘Elite Forest Management Product’. ForestRe’s partners have been Globe Underwriting with Liberty Mutual, Willis Towers Watson and The Nature Conservancy, focussing initially on a native Californian community successfully managing their fire exposure through long-term fuel reduction activities.

Empirical data from ForestRe over the last decade and millions of hectares, demonstrate the dramatic reduction in fire experience compared with neighbouring forestry. The new product identifies the key fuel reduction activities and provides significant premium discounts if these are practiced over time. At last, insurers with the ‘Elite Forest Management Product’ will reward communities’ good practice and improved resilience to climate change.

This work is crucial as forestry is the only at-scale solution to slowing climate change, if we act now.

ForestRe is now engaging with the world’s leading Global forest fire experts to develop Elite Forest Management standards appropriate to each of the main forestry regions of the world. This will be a direct benefit too all investment institutions that have forestry assets, even if they do not insure.

Excellent. A great forum to catch up and hear new things … It is great to see who has attended sessions, and in that way it is far better than a normal conference.

Phil Cottle

Sessions