The unfolding coronavirus (Covid-19) crisis has focused attention on the speed with which such outbreaks can spread globally. It has also shown just how complex business travel risks have become. Despite foreign governments outlining plans for the repatriation of their citizens, for the individual overseas traveller caught up in the crisis it would have been difficult to source information and…
The digital revolution has meant that organisations are becoming increasingly connected, businesses are more open, and many companies have longer-term relationships with customers than ever before. At the same time, cybercriminals are constantly expanding their own scope and capabilities, leading to an unprecedented level of sophistication. This, coupled with an increasingly complex regulatory environment, means that companies of all sizes…
Scott Toland has joined Zurich Insurance Group as head of US casualty international programmes underwriting within its commercial insurance business. Zurich said he will be responsible for “driving underwriting leadership and leading operational transformation in the US casualty international programme”. Mr Toland joins Zurich from AIG, where he held various leadership positions. Most recently, he served as senior vice-president, leading…
For some time, there has been a growing demand from risk managers and brokers for greater transparency of data when it comes to global programmes. They have also been looking for better-quality and cleaner data. That demand for transparency has largely been met by most carriers in the global insurance programme world, and data is now routinely shared. As a…
Managing general agents (MGAs) are one of the fastest-growing segments of the global insurance industry, particularly in Europe. They have long been an important feature of the US market, but in Europe and the rest of the world, the sector is growing rapidly and MGAs are becoming much more structured and sophisticated. As a result, insurers are increasingly looking at…
At a global level, there has been a worsening claims environment for directors’ and officers’ (D&O) liability ever since the financial crisis, and the current situation reflects a significantly more challenging regulatory and legal environment than in the past. Regulators and policymakers around the world have focused their attention more and more on directors and officers in their efforts to…
The insurance industry is undergoing a fundamental transformation and there is a big focus on technology and how to address changing customer needs. And while this is of course important, the vital role of people should not be forgotten. The insurance industry is still, and always has been, a people industry and relies on attracting and retaining the best talent…
Insurance buyers are divided over whether cyber property damage should be covered by standalone cyber policies or property insurance, just as insurers ramp up efforts to tackle silent cyber risks, according to a new survey of mainly US insureds by Advisen and Zurich. The split fell in favour of cyber standalone policies at 49%, against 41% for coverage under property…
People are becoming more aware of the increasing frequency and intensity of climate events, and corporations are slowly responding to this increased awareness among customers. However, it may not have reached the point where such risks start to significantly influence how organisations do business. Hence, the question is: when will action on climate change reach a tipping point, ie when…
Technology is continually improving the customer experience in the insurance industry. One area that has been a problem, not just for the insurance industry but for the broader financial sector, is unstructured data, and in particular, text documents and emails with attachments. Automation has struggled with unstructured data, but now artificial intelligence (AI) is being used in pilot projects in…