Oct 16 (Reuters) - New Zealand's Tower on Monday lifted its full-year profit forecast, citing lower-than-expected costs from Vanuatu cyclone claims, favourable foreign exchange rates, and no large events costs since May 9.

The insurer had revised down its earnings forecasts three times since the start of the year due to extreme weather turbulence and geological disasters.

Tower now expects to post an underlying net profit after tax between NZ$7 million to NZ$10 million ($4.14 million-$5.92 million) in fiscal 2023, compared with an earlier forecast for between a loss of NZ$2 million and a profit of NZ$3 million.

The reported profit for the fiscal year will be impacted by additional non-underlying costs including an increase to the customer remediation provision, the company said.

It also expects large events cost for the year to total around NZ$38 million. The insurer was earlier expecting full use of its NZ$50 million large events allowance for the year.

The company sees gross written premiums to total to NZ$526 million for the year ending Sept. 30, up 17% on the prior year. The jump reflects rating increases, organic growth, and strong customer retention, it said.

Vanuatu and other vulnerable countries are already grappling with powerful impacts of a heating planet. The south Pacific island nation has been slammed by powerful climate-fueled cyclones, including

two in March

this year that left 10% of its population still in evacuation centers.

($1 = 1.6903 New Zealand dollars) (Reporting by Echha Jain in Bengaluru; Editing by Jan Harvey and Diane Craft)