In the high-risk manufacturing sector, where large-dollar claims are common, small to middle-market companies struggle to find experienced partners capable of providing targeted risk control and effective techniques to lower loss results and reduce the effect on the total cost of risk. Here are four tactics industrial companies can implement to reduce the cost of claims. Continue reading
The world is a dangerous, unpredictable place — not a bad thing, perhaps, if you’re in the business of selling insurance, making loans or figuring out ways to prevent mishaps. Continue reading
The data for the study “Insurance Costs for Mid-Rise Wood Frame and Concrete Residential Buildings” was drawn from published literature and consultations with brokers, underwriters and property managers. Interviews with three underwriters and data from the Canadian Wood Council (CWC) show that builders’ risk insurance rates per $100 monthly for comparable wood and concrete buildings are on average $0.008 for concrete and $0.053 for wood. When excluding the rate provided by CWC for wood frame insurance, which was significantly lower than the rates provided by the underwriters, the average rate for wood buildings rises to $0.06, a factor of 7.5 times greater than that for concrete buildings. Continue reading
There are several warning signs that a workers’ compensation claim may be fraudulent. These include Monday morning reports of an injury that happened the previous week, conflicting descriptions of how the injury occurred, no witnesses and a history of claims, according to a 2011 white paper on the subject released by Employers, an insurer specializing in small businesses. Continue reading
Imagine a scenario where sensor-laden vehicles pass through intersections by communicating with each other, rather than grinding to a halt at traffic lights. A newly published study co-authored by MIT researchers claims this kind of traffic-light-free transportation design, if it ever arrives, could allow twice as much traffic to use the roads. Continue reading
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration is stepping up its enforcement against severe workplace safety violators, raising concerns about publicly shaming employers and the large number of small employers on the list. Continue reading
The property/casualty industry is undergoing significant challenges with increased claim severity in liability and physical damage claims. These increases are outpacing inflation and rate adequacy. According to the Insurance Information Institute, in 2009 the average private passenger auto bodily injury claim was $13,891. In 2014, that average grew to $16,640 – an increase of almost 20 percent. The private passenger auto collision loss ratio has risen from 67.7 percent in 2010 to 78.3 percent in 2015 – a 16 percent increase. The loss ratio can be adversely impacted by claim handling, underwriting and rate inadequacy with claim leakage as a primary cause of loss ratio deterioration. Continue reading
(Reuters) — Apple Inc. on Monday urged the creation of a government panel on encryption to help resolve a standoff over national security and data privacy that began last week after the technology company refused a U.S. government demand to unlock an iPhone used in a mass shooting in California in December. Continue reading
