Abstract

Over the time, the whole Europe was affected by disasters, to a greater or lesser extent; therefore, each country tried to mitigate the impact of disasters adopting different protection systems. Most parts of the European countries faced difficulties adapting to climate change. Nevertheless, Romania is the only country in Europe which has recently adopted a compulsory insurance for dwellings against natural disasters, after many years of legal or political objections. Can it be presumed that Romania is more affected by the earthquakes, floods or landslides than other European countries? The purpose of this study is in threefold: to examine the usefulness of the compulsory insurance for dwellings in Romania; to make a comparative analysis with other European countries which took into consideration similar insurance arrangements against different natural hazards; and last but not the least, to investigate the social inequities that came with this compulsory law. Economic and social reasons explain the choice of this law; however, they engender social inequities for the elderly with low incomes.

Key words: Catastrophe losses, compulsory insurance of dwellings, social inequity, regional analysis, Romania.