Do valor simbólico à precificação dos riscos ambientais. A legitimação das Seguradoras na oferta de Seguros Ambientais no estado do Rio Grande do Sul.

Abstract

At the same time the environmental issue has become a protagonist and it reveals meaningful alterations about the valuation of the environment by society through different actors that contribute to the growth of products with environmental appeal. The companies gave new meaning to their relation with the environment and created new line of products focusing on this market. In this study it was investigated the process of legitimation of the environmental insurance market in Brazil, through a qualitative research that selected four insurance companies in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, to which we dedicated our analysis under the perspective of the offer of environmental insurance in the market. The main objective of this study was to discuss how the evaluation and valuation of the environmental risks is done in this market and to verify how the companies prescribe the environmental risks through the creation of risk evaluation devices that are used to convert the symbolic value of environmental risks into a monetary one. The Economic Sociology reference allowed us a view upon markets like social construction, gathering, to the economic study, some political, cultural, symbolic and social aspects.