ILC ARTICLE

Breakfast news 17 November

16th November 2021

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Home Claims Conference highlights need for change

The home insurance sector is facing its most challenging time since the 2008 credit crunch, and significant improvements in efficiencies and communication will be critical for those hoping to emerge from this period stronger.

That was the message from Gary Barker, Claims Director, The AA, during his keynote address at the I Love Claims Home & Property Claims Conference, which took place at the CBS Arena, Coventry, on 11 November.

Government urged to fight flood risk

Regional Director of Major Complex Loss at the Davies Group, James Miller, has called on the government to mitigate rising flood risks by providing more grants for fixing schemes. He says many grants are only made available after a flood has occurred. Miller is also calling on developers to ensure homes built on flood plains are more resilient.

According to the Met Office, flooding is now the greatest natural disaster risk in the UK, with one in six properties vulnerable. Meanwhile, by 2050 annual flood losses are set to increase by between 25% and 80%.

UK spends £6bn on comfort shopping

UK households spent more than £6bn during the pandemic on items no longer wanted. According to a new study by Aviva, 88% of Britons treated themselves to purchases they now regret.

More than half the population bought clothes or shoes (54%), while 34% of people bought new phones or tablets. Gaming equipment, kitchen equipment and home gyms were also popular purchases. According to data from How We Live, the average spend on ‘treat’ purchases was £1,205.

Zurich commits to repair over replace approach

Zurich has underscored its commitment to sustainable operations by signing a partnership with Plastic Surgeon which will enable policyholders to repair damaged home surfaces rather than replace them.

ISO 14001-accredited Plastic Surgeon uses state-of-the-art technology and deploys a single skilled technician onsite to carry out a high-quality restorations. Repairs are usually carried out inside a week and come with a 24-month guarantee.

Motor 

ARC360 secures IMI CPD accreditation

ARC360 has secured IMI Continuous Professional Development (CPD) accreditation for its digital and physical events.

The IMI has created a credit-based system to underpin and evaluate the CPD of its members, which requires registered professionals to achieve at least 90 CPD credits during a three-year cycle.

The IMI has confirmed that ARC360 events will fit into its one-hour, one-credit policy.

IAA achieves global security standard

Technology leader in the global salvage market, IAA, has achieved the ISO 27001 certification. The certification is considered the international gold standard for information security management.

Achieving certification assures IAA customers and stakeholders alike that all digital data assets such as financial information, intellectual property, employee details and information received from third parties are managed according to strict information security controls.

CAPS passes data test

The Common Automotive Platform Standard (CAPS) has achieved global recognition for its data security policies and procedures. It passed the Type 1 Service Organisation Control (SOC2) security examination, providing reassurance to more than 1,500 UK bodyshops and many of the largest insurance companies and UK collision repair service providers that the information reported by CAPS is transparent, complete, scalable and flexible.

SOC2 tests a service organisation’s controls relating to the security, availability and processing integrity of each of its systems, as well as the confidentiality and privacy of user data.

Roads rife for rising fraud

Carpenters Group Head of Defendant Insurance Services Faye Fishlock has warned of a potential spike in motor claims fraud as traffic levels on many UK roads are now higher than pre-pandemic levels.

She has suggested that an increase in crash-for-cash claims could add to a potential backlog of existing claims that have not yet been processed, but adds the introduction of the new system for claims, the OIC Portal, means accurate data will not be available for some time to come.

Sabre announces MCE acquisition

Sabre Insurance Group is entering the motorcycle insurance market at scale with the acquisition of MCE Insurance. As part of the deal, Sabre becomes the exclusive underwriter for policies issued by MCE.

It will have complete control of pricing, claims handling and reserving, and also gains access to MCE’s multi-year claims and policy data, which will be combined with Sabre’s leading digital pricing techniques.

Copart expansion continues with new East Anglia site

Vehicle remarketing and recycling company Copart will develop a new 68-acre Super Centre in East Anglia to support continued growth and customer demand. The new site is expected to be operational by the end of 2022 and will provide between 100 and 120 jobs, including new apprenticeships.

The new build, to be situated north of Bury St Edmunds, follows last year’s expansion projects, which included a new customer service centre in Bedford, a new Operation Centre near Glasgow and the quadrupling in size of its Bristol Operation Centre.

ClaimsTech 

Lemonade announces first acquisition

Lemonade has bolstered is motor insurance business with the acquisition of pay-per-mile insurer Metromile. Its first acquisition comes just a week after it introduced its debut car insurance product, Lemonade Car.

The deal, which values Metromile at about $500m and is expected to close by mid-2022, provides New York-based Lemonade with more automotive claims data and a team that has worked in the business for a decade.

Nimbla secures Silicon Valley funding

UK-based invoice insurance start-up Nimbla has attracted £5.1m in funding from Silicon Valley’s FIN VC with participation from Barclays Bank. Nimbla’s digital insurance platform allows businesses to check a buyer’s ability to pay and insures individual invoices against non-payment with real-time quotes.

Since launch in 2016, Nimbla has processed over 67 million invoices worth £2.5bn, with demand tripling during the pandemic.

Verisk deal develops data analytics

Verisk’s expansion strategy has continued with the acquisition of Data Driven Safety, a US-based public record data aggregation firm specialising in driver risk assessment.

Verisk, a leading global data analytics provider, believes the deal will develop its already robust auto insurance analytics and provide more information for insurers to refine underwriting, improve the customer experience and promote public safety.  

Market News  

Industry Leader Interview – Donna Fitzgerald, Chief Operating Officer at Agiito

“Customer behaviour, again. I mentioned this earlier, but I think we have yet to see the full impact of changing customer behaviour; demand for high value claims is still low due to the reduced severity and frequency of claims, such as large escape of water claims.  We will, however, continue to experience and manage the impact of extreme weather changes such as flooding and the demand surge that come with these.”

Rising star interview with Lauren Linton – Marketing Co-ordinator, IAA

I see this as a journey that doesn’t have an end-point and technology will continue to improve the customer experience and unlock value for our customers. I’m very lucky at IAA, we’re the technology leaders in the category and our new product pipeline is really exciting.

Fraud vulnerability rises with debt

New research by Aviva has found a direct correlation between having debt and being vulnerable to online financial fraud. Its Aviva Fraud Report found that 13% of people were the victim of a financial scam relating to Covid-19, and 66% of those said their debts had increased in the last year.

As such it has called on the government to offer greater consumer protection by expanding the Online Safety Bill to include financial scams promoted by paid-for adverts.

Sky’s the limit for Zurich

Zurich has highlighted the environmental and efficiency benefits of using drones as part of the motor claims investigation process. It partnered with drone flight company Iprosurv in 2018 to secure on-site filming following an incident, helping it to establish cause and origin as well as the extent of surrounding damage.

It says drone data will not replace people but can support them in handling claims more effectively and in a sustainable way.

AkzoNobel secures Royal approval for sustainability

AkzoNobel received a prestigious award for sustainability at COP26. In recognition of its commitment towards creating a sustainable market it was presented with the Terra Carta Seal by His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales.

AkzoNobel is the onlypaints and coatings manufacturer to receive the honour, which forms part of the Terra Carta, a recovery plan for nature, people and planet introduced earlier this year through HRH The Prince of Wales’ Sustainable Markets Initiative.