News
Recovery on Maui could take years, officials say, as the death toll rises again
Officials say it could take years — or longer — to repair the damage from this week's wildfires that devastated parts of Maui, claimed dozens of lives and razed a historic town.
That acknowledgement came as the death toll on Maui was raised to at least 55 people. Hawaii Gov. Josh Green warned at a news conference that the death toll will rise, as rescuers reach parts of the island that had been inaccessible due to the three ongoing fires.
"We are seeing loss of life," Green said. "As you know, the number has been rising and we will continue to see loss of life." He said that the fires were the "greatest emergency we've seen in decades."
U.S. forecasters raise 2023 hurricane forecast
U.S. government forecasters on Thursday said they expect a more dangerous Atlantic storm season than previously projected, raising their Atlantic hurricane outlook due to high sea surface temperatures.
The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) forecast 14-21 named storms, with 6-11 potentially becoming hurricanes with winds of 74 miles per hour (119 kmh) or greater. Two to five of those hurricanes could become major events with sustained winds above 111 miles per hour (179 kmh), NOAA said.
In May, NOAA had predicted 12-17 named storms, 5-8 hurricanes and one to four major hurricanes. The raised outlook follows a similar projection by Colorado State University researchers.
An average Atlantic season has 14 named storms, seven hurricanes and three major hurricanes. The season lasts to the end of November.
Zurich Insurance Group unveils first-half results
Operating profit matches previous high
Results season is in full swing, with Zurich Insurance Group among the latest to outline its interim financials.
Lifting the lid on the numbers, Zurich noted: “Net income after tax attributable to shareholders (NIAS) increased 6% to US$2.5 billion compared with the prior-year period, mainly due to a more favourable net impact from capital gains and losses.
“NIAS also included US$0.1 billion of costs incurred related to the repurposing of some of Zurich’s own use real estate portfolio.”
Zurich described the company’s interim results as “strong,” with its operating profit matching the record-high BOP posted in the same span in 2022.
Commenting on Zurich’s financials, group chief executive Mario Greco said: “Zurich has made a strong start to the new financial cycle. We have high expectations for the group’s performance and we set targets accordingly. More importantly, we deliver.
“We’ve achieved a return on equity that’s among the highest in the industry, while minimising volatility, maintaining a strong balance sheet, and taking advantage of the growth opportunities available to us.
Allianz reveals financial results for half-year 2023
CEO reflects on an "agonizing period of inflation and polarization"
Commenting on the results, CEO of Allianz SE Oliver Bäte said the “excellent” figures reflected the strength of the insurer’s fundamentals as it capitalises on its global scale and diversified business mix to the advantage of customers and shareholders alike."
Bäte added that Allianz’s “solid growth” mirrors customers’ continued trust in the business to support them through an “agonising period of inflation and polarisation”.
The global insurance giant Allianz has today announced its Q2 and H1 operating results, and affirmed its 2023 operating profit target at €14.2 billion.
In Q2, the group saw its total business volume surge 5.9% to €39.6 billion while its operating profit increased 7.1% to €3.8 billion, which was largely attributed to strong performance in its property-casualty (P&C) and life/health segments and partially offset by a decrease in the asset under management (AuM)-driven revenues in its asset management segment.
For H1 2023, Allianz saw its total business volumes rise 4.8% to €85.6 billion while its operating profit increased 14.9% to €7.5 billion, again largely driven by its life/health and P&C business segments.
Among the financial highlights shared, Allianz revealed that the Q2 uptick in total business volume seen in its P&C segment was the result of higher prices and volumes while the growth of its life/health business was linked to strong single-premium volumes in the US. Internal growth was also strong for the quarter at 8.7%, driven by the P&C segment and supported by the life/health segment.
For the half-year period, internal growth was strong at 6.4%, driven by the P&C business segment.
Double digit growth for P&C insurance
5 ways Congress can revamp the NFIP, per the GAO
Although Risk Rating 2.0, the updated rate-setting method for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), better aligns the program’s premiums with the flood risk of individual properties, it still fails to achieve actuarial sound rates, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
The NFIP has long been plagued by rate inadequacy, with a report from Poulton Associates, LLC and HazardHub finding that the program’s premiums fell 9% from 2014-2019, despite Congress mandating 5% annual increases.
As the program pays out more in claims than it collects in premiums, the Federal Emergency Management Agency is forced to borrow money from the Treasure Department to make up the difference.
According to the GAO report, FEMA has borrowed some $36.5 billion since 2005 to cover NFIP losses, and would have to use revenue from current and future policyholders to repay it. The debut is largely due to discounted premiums that FEMA has been statutorily required to provide, which in turn has the effect of charging future and current policyholders for previously incurred losses.
Community discounts were a major propeller of the rate decline, Craig Poulton, CEO of Poulton Associates previously told PropertyCasualty360.com.
Recommended Events
Connected Claims USA 2023 | Austin, TX | September 26-27, 2023 | Reuters Events Insurance
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With inflation and supply chain impacts, nuclear verdicts, changing customer expectations and an evolving ecosystem to navigate, there is unprecedented urgency to be agile and recalibrate focus to achieve claims excellence.
Act now at Reuters Events: Connected Claims USA 2023 (September 26-27, Austin) to drive the insurance claims industry forwards in an evolving business landscape. Join 700+ senior claims decision-makers to enhance customer service, streamline claims processes, perfect carrier-vendor alliances, and foster adaptive, future-thinking claims strategies, centered on people, data and innovation.
See you in Austin, at #CCUSA – the must-attend event for North America’s claims community!
AI in Insurance
Planck Keeps Customers at the Leading Edge of GenAI
Planck, the leading provider of AI-based risk insights and the premier commercial insurance underwriting workbench, has become the first insurtech provider to offer generative AI (GenAI) functionalities within their underwriting platform, granting underwriters unparalleled access to risk data, insight generation, and explainability. As of July 2023, all Planck customers are leveraging the power of GenAI via the Planck online portal, launching a new era of efficiency, precision, and automation for the commercial insurance industry.
Planck has applied GenAI to resolve the most pressing challenges in commercial insurance underwriting. Some of the key features introduced include:
- Business Insights: Completes underwriting fields with accurate GenAI predictions
- Reasoning: Provides data sources, transparency, and explainability to Business Insights
- Classification: Assembles a list of NAICS class codes predicted for a business
- Keywords: Identifies common words and phrases associated with a particular business
- Business Description: Generates a concise yet comprehensive written summary of the business and its services
"Planck's generative AI features have revolutionized the way carriers underwrite policies,” says Planck Global Head of Insurance Leandro DalleMule. “The ability to ask specific questions and receive instant insights improves their ability to identify emerging opportunities and assess evolving risks. This is a truly groundbreaking application and a mark of even greater things to come."
A recent report by McKinsey & Company confirms a growing adoption of AI in insurance. Their research indicates current P&C underwriting tactics will be completely eclipsed by machine and deep learning models as early as 2030. AI-driven solutions are shaping the landscape of commercial insurance and are poised to drive unprecedented advancements in risk assessment and underwriting automation.
“Planck has positioned itself as the GenAI resource for commercial insurance and, together with the senior executives at our customer base, we continue to define and deliver the vision of AI underwriting,” says Planck Co-Founder and CEO Elad Tsur. “The question is not whether insurers should use GenAI, but rather how they should use it. GenAI is revolutionizing the commercial insurance industry and we plan on delivering many more exciting capabilities — to achieve true AI underwriting, empower our customers with real-time data-driven insights that were previously inaccessible, and perfect risk selection through our innovative risk workbench."
InsurTech/M&A/Finance💰/Collaboration
Vesttoo investigation finds external factors responsible for fraud crisis: Interim CEO Barlev
The incoming interim Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of insurtech Vesttoo has stated that following initial conclusions from an in-depth investigation into fraudulent LOCs, the company has discovered that numerous external factors caused the current crisis.
Ami Barlev, who has served as a member of Vesttoo’s Board since 2021 and was confirmed earlier this week as the new interim CEO of the firm, has made a statement on the current fraudulent collateral issue engulfing the insurtech.
He explains that the company’s in-depth instigation, undertaken by leading forensic investigation experts in conjunction with an international law firm engaged by Vesttoo’s independent ad hoc committee, has produced initial conclusions and recommendations which have been fully adopted.
“We have learned that a number of factors, external to the company, led directly to the current crisis, including the involvement of certain foreign banks and financial institutions,” says Barlev.
“Vesttoo has also initiated immediate changes in its management, removing some individuals from their positions, also as a result of the findings,” he adds.
American Family Ventures announces AFV Fund IV
American Family Ventures (AFV) introduced a new $444 million fund called AFV Fund IV that’s backed by 21 partners.
“Insurtech is going through its latest inflection point, and at American Family Ventures, we believe this is a time to be bold. Opportunities and returns will be unevenly distributed in favor of those who move. To us, Fund IV is a tool for moving LPs and startups forward into the next phase of the industry’s transformation.” – Dan Reed, managing director.
Originally established in 2013 as the venture capital arm of American Family Insurance, AFV evolved into an insurance industry-representative LP syndicate in 2019.
Commentary/Opinion
Building Trust through Responsible Al in Claims: Championing a Voluntary Code of Conduct
One of the core tenets of insurance is that of trust.
Our customers must believe that monies will be available to meet their costs and settlement will be on a fair and equitable basis in the event of a valid claim. Without that trust, the whole ecosystem of insurance comes under threat. Customers will feel short-changed, deceived, and even mutinous – perhaps to the point where fraudulent behaviours are seen as somehow acceptable.
Therefore, it seems obvious that claims settlement systems must reflect that core principle in both design and application. Be it a human-centred, technology driven, or hybrid decision-making modus operandi, there is a requirement upon us to deliver a service that is transparent, accountable, and beyond reproach.
What then of the role of Al as we navigate the waters of future developments? How are we to ensure that there is never any danger of Al mismanagement, misunderstanding, or unintended consequences breaching the fundamental principles of a trust-based relationship?
Eddie Longworth, New Solutions in Claims, Supply Chain and Vendor Development
What is the hottest topic in insurance right now?
The insurance industry is hyper fixated on an issue that is extremely relevant to the property sector, namely valuation.
That is according to Ben Beazley (pictured), executive vice president, national accounts property at Jencap Group.
“Valuation is the hottest topic in insurance right now,” Beazley said. “For nearly 20 years, the cost to rebuild a structure due to a loss was much, much lower — the market was so soft. Now, since COVID, rates have risen dramatically and really thrown insurers off.”
In a conversation with Insurance Business, Beazley spoke about how valuation has been miscalculated within the industry and the ways to get more accurate numbers.
“Material and labor costs are often miscalculated”
With soft market conditions persisting over multiple years, especially in the property sector, some underwriters had tackled valuation issues behind the scenes, but, as Beazley pointed out, “they did the rating of the account and would be using higher values, but that would become a piece of paper in a client’s file, not indicative of a wider trend.”
5 Ways to Ensure Tech Delivers Value
To ensure system integration and automation deliver on so many promises, there are five key steps insurers should take.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- One-off or standalone solutions acquired for specific tasks, incomplete conversions from one system to another and failures of large-scale modernization initiatives have resulted in insurers being invested in a myriad of systems and applications. Some work, some sort of work, some don’t work at all, but in a Lego sort of scenario, taking out the systems that don’t work is nigh on impossible because the “blocks” are now foundational to the insurer’s infrastructure.
- The solution lies in investing in specific areas that touch the customer and focusing on incremental change -- not attempting to do everything at once. It also requires a no-code/low-code environment, a more agile data platform and the right service provider.
Jamie Peers, vice president, Synatic