The Allianz Group is one of the world’s leading insurers and asset managers, active in almost 70 countries and serving around 97 million private and corporate customers*. Our customers benefit from a broad range of personal and corporate insurance services, ranging from property, life and health insurance to assistance services to credit insurance and global business insurance. Recognized for the seventh consecutive year as the number one global insurance brand in Interbrand’s Best Global Brands 2025 ranking, Allianz’s success is built on technology-enabled customer centricity – providing peace of mind, protection, and prevention for our customers and strengthening the resilience of individuals, communities, and societies. We are one of the world’s largest investors, managing around 764 billion euros** on behalf of our insurance customers. Furthermore, our asset managers PIMCO and Allianz Global Investors manage about 2.0 trillion euros** of third-party assets. Thanks to our systematic integration of environmental and social criteria in our business processes and investment decisions, Allianz received an MSCI ESG Rating of AAA (as of March 2026). In 2025, our 156,000 dedicated employees achieved a total business volume of 186.9 billion euros and an operating profit of 17.4 billion euros for our shareholders.
When the fire is out, the disruptions begin
The first 72 hours: access, not ashes
The most common early brake on recovery is simply getting people and goods to the site. Police cordons and safety closures can prevent staff, suppliers and customers from returning.
“Access restrictions are the No. 1 continuity issue in the first three days,” Albertini says. “If trucks and teams can’t reach you, nothing else moves.”
What you need to have established are:
- Alternate access routes and delivery points
- Re-entry letters/passes agreed with local authorities
- A call tree and channels for staff, suppliers, and customers
Week two: utilities bite — especially water
As emergency response stabilizes, utility problems rise to the surface. Power and telecoms are patchy; generators help, but diesel resupply can be hit-and-miss inside a disaster zone. The quiet single point of failure is water. “Post-wildfire, you can see sediment, metals, organics and even fire-retardant residues in the system,” he explains. That affects drinking water and process water.
The fix is unglamorous but essential — plan for weeks, not days:
- System flushing and backflow prevention
- Onsite storage sized for critical processes
- Temporary treatment skids (carbon or membrane filtration)
- Named utility contacts and priority-restoration agreements
Months later: the “second wave”
The invisible contamination problem
Smoke travels far ahead of flames, carrying soot and ash deep into bearings, sensors, robots, filling lines and cleanrooms. “That’s how you get premature bearing failures, overheating, bad product quality and even product recalls,” he says.
The playbook:
- Secure a priority contract with a specialist decontamination firm before wildfire season.
- Clean first, then test and recertify critical spaces and equipment.
- Document every step — photos, logs, test results — to avoid warranty and insurance disputes.
What fast restarters do differently
Speed comes from a wildfire-specific continuity plan — tested, updated and drilled. Standout traits Albertini sees in the fast starters are:
- Pre-mapped alternative access routes and logistics.
- Pre-agreed utility priorities and named contacts for power, water and telecoms.
- Clear crisis communications (staff, authorities, suppliers, customers, public).
- People plans: remote-work options, welfare support, roster depth.
- Annual exercises with lessons folded back into the plan.
“Generic plans focus on critical equipment,” he says. “Wildfire plans must also cover everything outside your fence — roads, bridges, utilities and your suppliers’ constraints.”
Proving contingent Business Interruption (BI) when your site isn’t burned
Build back better: where €1 goes furthest
Start with low-cost, high-return steps:
- Defensible space & vegetation management around buildings and yards.
- Ember-resistant vents/meshes on buildings and rooftop equipment.
- Class A roofing; fire-rated windows/siding where exposure warrants it.
Then medium investments:
- Automatic sprinklers in key areas; improved air-intake/filtration to reduce smoke ingress.
And strategic upgrades:
- Microgrids (onsite generation + storage) to ride through grid outages.
- Redundancy for power/water/telecom and the ability to island operations.
“Don’t wait for flames at your fence line. Plan access, water and cleanup now. Those three steps can make you a priority and save you weeks when everyone else is calling for the same help.”
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* Customer count reflects Allianz customers in consolidated entities that are part of the customer reporting scope only.
** As of December 31, 2025.