Who Insures the Oil Industry? (Landman Got Me Thinking...)

I’ve recently been watching Landman on Paramount+ and if you haven’t, it’s basically oil wells, lawsuits, land rights, and chaos in cowboy boots. It’s gritty, over-the-top, and totally binge-worthy.

But it got me thinking... who the hell insures this stuff?

I mean, the scale of it all the drills, the explosions, the politics, the people surely someone, somewhere, is underwriting it. So I did a bit of digging. And turns out? The oil and gas industry is like the Olympics of risk and the insurance behind it is just as dramatic.

🌍 From Wells to Tankers: It’s All Covered (Sort of)

The oil industry isn’t one thing it’s three.
There’s upstream (digging it out), midstream (moving it), and downstream (refining and selling it). And every stage has its own insurance cocktail:

• Upstream = blowouts, offshore disasters, massive liability if it all goes wrong. Think well control cover, pollution liability, even cyber protection (because yes, rigs can get hacked).
• Midstream = pipelines, fuel storage, marine shipping. Lots of environmental exposure here and if a tanker leaks or a pipeline ruptures, insurers are footing the bill.
• Downstream = refineries and petrol stations. Explosion risk, business interruption, product liability if dodgy fuel hits the pumps. It’s all insured.

Some of the claims examples are wild like when BP’s Texas refinery exploded in 2005, or Deepwater Horizon in 2010, which triggered one of the biggest insurance and reinsurance cascades in history. Entire books could be written on those claims files.

💥 Real Insurance Claims from Real Disasters

Watching Landman made me wonder: what does this actually look like when things go wrong?

Here’s the quick-fire version:

• Deepwater Horizon: $65 billion in fines and clean-up, over $400m claimed on rig insurance, and insurers globally rethinking how they price offshore risk.
• Hurricane Ida (2021): offshore platforms shut down, terminals flooded property and BI cover triggered, but reinsurers now tightening terms in storm zones.
• Colonial Pipeline Cyberattack: a ransomware hack stopped half of the East Coast’s fuel flow Colonial paid $4.4m in ransom, and suddenly every energy company wanted cyber cover.

These aren’t just insurance policies they’re financial life rafts.

🔮 What’s Changing in 2025?

Here’s where it gets interesting. Insurance companies don’t just pay claims they shape the market. And right now, they’re getting a lot fussier about fossil fuels.

In Europe, big names like Allianz and Generali are saying: “No insurance if you’re not transitioning to net-zero.” Some insurers want methane tracking and ESG plans baked into cover. In the UK, Lloyd’s has been backing away from high carbon projects too.

Meanwhile, in parts of the US (like Texas), the political tide is going the other way. Some states are literally banning insurers from “boycotting” fossil fuels. It’s a tug-of-war between climate goals and local economies and insurance is stuck right in the middle.

Oh, and with climate change? Expect fewer insurers offering storm or flood cover in risky areas. Premiums are up, deductibles are higher, and reinsurers are asking for way more data before they back a deal.

🤠 So, Who Does Insure the Oil Industry?

The answer?

A shrinking group of brave (and very well-paid) insurers, brokers, and reinsurers.
Mostly based in London, Europe, Houston, and Bermuda. And increasingly, some of them are saying: “Only if you clean up your act.”

Insurance in oil & gas used to be about fires, spills, and broken pipes. Now? It’s also about carbon, ESG ratings, and cyber breaches. The game has changed.

Final Thought

Landman might be fiction but the risks it hints at are very real. The oil and gas world is built on pressure geological, economic, and now political. Insurance is the safety net beneath all of it. But in 2025, even that net is changing shape.

Whether you’re underwriting platforms in the North Sea or watching the drama unfold on TV, one thing’s clear:
It’s never been riskier or more interesting to be in energy insurance.

Written By Luke 🤟
Contributor at RiskWire – The Pulse of UK Insurance.

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