ILC ARTICLE

ILC Breakfast News – Wednesday 22 December 2021

21st December 2021

Motor

New date set for £1m ILC Motor Claims Lunch

The £1m ILC Motor Claims Networking Lunch has been postponed from its original date of 21 January to 25 March 2022.

The decision, made in consultation with and the full support of ILC partners, has been taken in light of recent developments relating to the Covid-19 Omicron variant.Apart from a change of date, the much-anticipated event will be as spectacular and fun-filled as always with every element that has made the day such a success over the past 11 years again included, alongside a raft of new activities to help carry ILC past the £1m fundraising barrier for its chosen charity, Rainbow Trust.

Claims inflation up by 6.1%

Motor claims inflation increased by 6.1% in the first half of 2021 according to data released by Willis Towers Watson, taking the average cost per claim to £5,380. While lockdowns saw a drop in claims volumes, the cost of settling claims continued to rise with the six-month increase following a 10.8% rise during the whole of 2020.

Accidental Damage increased by the fastest rate in the last 18 months, rising by 8.2% in the first half of 2021 and 8.4% in 2020.

GT Motive announces key partnerships

GT Motive has announced a new partnership with Cazoo Data Services to provide claims handlers with quick and easy access to the information required to assess a total loss from within GT Global. As part of the deal, GT Motive will now automatically retrieve Cazoo Data Services’ valuation and publish it into its total loss worksheet.

Meanwhile, iRG Innovative Repair Group has announced it will incorporate the GT Motive estimating system into its business as an estimating system of choice.

Gemini joins 5% Club

Gemini ARC – ILC Motor’s first repairer Corporate Partner – has become a gold member of the 5% Club, an industry-led campaign that aims to support the careers of young people across the country.

To be a member, a minimum of five per cent of the total workforce must be on ‘earn as you learn’ schemes such as apprenticeships, trainee courses or graduate schemes, while an Employer Audit determines whether a company has met the criteria for a Bronze, Silver or Gold Status.

Register now for January’s webinARC – Sustainability 2022

In the first of our new monthly webinARC series for 2022 we explore the key themes of sustainability across the industry to discover just what it means to different operations at this current time.

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CoreLogic signs EIG deal

CoreLogic has agreed a landmark deal with Ecclesiastical Insurance Group (EIG) to provide its digital claims platform to EIG’s property claims operations. The agreement will enable EIG to enhance its existing claims capabilities by digitising processes to influence claims outcomes on a secure, real-time web application.The CoreLogic Claims Connect solution helps standardise claims processing on a single, cloud-based platform enabling rapid claim settlement, improved triage and distribution, supply chain collaboration and enhanced accuracy and transparency of the claims management process.

Davies steps up global expansion

Davies will acquire US-based insurance-focused actuarial consulting business Merlinos & Associates as part of its continued strategy of international expansion. All Merlinos employees will continue in their roles within Davies, with the Merlinos management team remaining in place to lead day-to-day operations

Merlinos provides a range of compliance, risk management, and wider actuarial consulting solutions to the property and casualty and life and health insurance markets in the US.

QuestGates confirms raft of internal promotions

QuestGates has announced a raft of senior promotions to consolidate a period of sustained growth and strategic acquisitions.

It has revealed that Dave Clare will step up as Divisional Director, Head of Surveying Services, Kevin Leake will be promoted to Divisional Director, Head of Property Adjusting, while Lucy Collett will become the company’s new Associate Director, Head of Customer Experience.

Further, Nicola Sutton is being promoted to Divisional Director, Head of Private Clients, and Alex Whitaker will become new Divisional Director, Contingency and Entertainment.

ClaimsTech

Underwriting platforms need tech update

The technological development of underwriting platforms needs to accelerate if they are to remain fit for purpose in an increasingly digitalised environment. That is the view of Michael Reilly, Managing Director, Insurance, Underwriting Community of Practice, Accenture.

He said that while underwriting is one of the most data-intensive areas of insurance, it remains disjointed and disconnected when it comes to looking at investments and results. He called for a third generation of underwriting platform that can manage all of the risk and customer information needed for risk evaluation to provide underwriters with the critical data needed to make the right decisions.

Frog Capital takes Genasys leap

South African-based insurance software solutions provider Genasys has announced a major investment of R260M from Frog Capital, a leading software Scale-Up investor. The investment is the largest ever in a South African-founded insurtech and will see Frog take a significant stake in the business, with the Genasys management team retaining operational control.

Genasys has developed a dynamic SaaS platform that provides modularised end-to-end policy administration and claims solutions for insurance businesses.

LexisNexis incorporates AI tech

Data and analytics provider for the insurance industry LexisNexis Risk Solutions has entered into a strategic alliance with Shift Technology, which provides AI-driven solutions. The collaboration will enable insurers to incorporate LexisNexis Claims Clarity data into Shift’s AI models, helping them predict fraud and risk at the first notice of loss.

LexisNexis Risk Solutions enable insurers to fast-track more than 80% of claims, allowing handlers to focus on more complex claims, while Shift Technology applies AI to support insurers in areas such as fraud and subrogation detection.

Humn takes commercial step

Humn has acquired Walsingham Motor Insurance Limited (WMIL), which focuses on delivering an underwriting profit through good risk selection and efficient claims management.

London-based Humn, an insurance provider producing real-time data-driven fleet insurance, believes the deal will accelerate growth in the commercial sector while adding further expertise to its underwriting and operations teams.

Market News

ILC Industry Leader Interview – Angel Martinez, CEO at GT Motive

“Thinking global and acting local in B2B software industry is a big challenge as different European markets are still acting in unique ways. So, finding the right balance is the key.”

Read the full interview here.

Covea celebrates ICS treble

Covéa Insurance has become the only member of the Institute of Customer Service (ICS) to hold three simultaneous ServiceMark Accreditations with Distinction after securing accreditation for Personal Lines, Protection and Commercial Lines.

The ServiceMark Accreditation with Distinction is valid for three years, subject to a further two mid-term ServCheck and Business Benchmarking surveys.

Ardonagh announces major new funding

The Ardonagh Group has announced significant new investment led by existing long-term shareholders Madison Dearborn Partners and HPS Investment Partners. 

As part of a transaction that values Ardonagh at $7.5bn, it has also secured funding from accounts managed by MDP and HPS, including a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, and several other large global institutions. Between them they will acquire more than $1bn equity.

Ageas gets behind frontline staff

Ageas Insurance is calling for tougher legislation to stop people abusing staff in customer-facing roles, after research from the Institute of Customer Service found that more than 60% of people in frontline positions have faced hostility in the last 12 months. This ranges from shouting and swearing to racial abuse, death threats, spitting and physical attacks.

As a result, Ageas is backing an open letter from the Institute of Customer Service which urges the government to introduce new measures to protect employees who serve the public.