Category Archives: Property/Casualty

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Flurry-Down Economics: The Real Cost of Blizzards

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Winter Storm Juno New York City

Despite predictions of a “historic” snowstorm this week, the Northeast – and the insurance industry – largely dodged the blizzard bullet. Over the past 20 years, winter storms have caused an average of $1.2 billion in insurable losses every year, the Insurance Information Institute reported. Last year’s polar vortex and significant snow accumulations came with a price tag between $15 and $50 billion, and winter weather caused $3.7 billion in overall losses, of which an estimated $2.3 billion was insured, according to MunichRe.

NATURAL DISASTER LOSSES IN THE UNITED STATES, 2014

Ahead of what could have been record snow, seven states preemptively declared a state of emergency for what some dubbed Winter Storm Juno. Authorities shut down many major cities, canceling thousands of flights and closing major roads and mass transit systems.

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Though Boston was pummeled by about two feet of snow, New York City and most of the region emerged relatively unscathed.

“We think the economic impact of the storm is going to be relatively small,” said Evan Gold, senior vice president at weather advisory firm Planalytics. “We’re estimating at about 0 million, and that’s simply based on the duration of the storm, the timing of the storm and the population centers that are impacted.”

Others estimate the cost may be closer to $1 billion, considering the lost business, wages and taxes, and snow removal costs. According to a new report from City Comptroller Scott Stringer, in the past 12 years, every inch of snow cost New York City an average of $1.8 million to remove. From 2003 through 2014, the city spent $663.2 million just to clear the snow. Lighter snowfall actually takes a greater toll per-inch. “It’s a lot more expensive on a per-inch basis when we get a little snow because we have startup costs and we have fixed costs. We have to have plows and salt,” Stringer said. As a result, the city saw 55.5 inches of snow in 2003 and paid $740,000 per inch in cleanup costs, while the city had 6.8 inches of snow in 2012 and paid $4 million per inch.

In a press conference on Tuesday, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo shrugged off the financial implications of preparations for and recovery from Juno, calling it one of the “costs of doing business.” He explained, “We factor that in—things like snow removal, salt purchases, overtime for crew to handle storms, these are factored in the budget and this was not exceptional to that process.”

The cost of overpreparation is hefty, however, and it primarily falls upon the public. A one-day storm in Massachusetts costs the state economy about $265 million, while the total cost in New York is around $700 million, according to the Boston Globe. A significant portion of that is due to lost wages for hourly workers, who tend to be hit the worst by snow-related shutdowns.

Travel cancellations have a similar impact.

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According to research firm masFlight, it costs an airline about ,000 to cancel a typical domestic flight on a full-size jet, but the total tab for all the passengers who were supposed to be on board is about ,000, due to the additional costs of lodging and meals.

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More than 4,700 flights were cancelled Tuesday after about 2,800 on Monday ahead of the storm, CNN reported. Amtrak also suspended service between New York and Boston because of the weather.

Frigid Weather Heightens Ice Hazards

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Freezing weather now sweeping across much of the U.S. brings a greater risk of ice storms and underlines the need for careful planning and heightened safety measures.

In fact, it does not take much ice to create disaster conditions.

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Even a thin coat of ice can create dangerous conditions on roads. Add strong winds and you have a recipe for downed trees and power lines, bringing outages that can last for days.

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According to The Weather Channel:

The Weather Channel also categorizes ice storms as nuisance, disruptive or crippling. A nuisance event is usually one of less than a 1/4 inch of ice. While these lighter accumulations are considered a nuisance, travel can still be extremely dangerous. A disruptive ice storm typically has 1/4 to 1/2 inch of ice accumulation, with ice starting to damage trees and power lines. Crippling ice storms, which have widespread accumulations of more than 1/2 inch, can cause severe tree damage resulting in power outages. The most devastating storms contain ice accumulation of an inch or more.

A special hazard to drivers is black ice, caused when moisture in the air freezes when it comes in contact with a much colder roadway, or when a sudden drop in temperature causes an already wet roadway to quickly freeze.

Fleet group ARI cautions against driving on black ice, which it said is most commonly found on overpasses and on roads that wind around bodies of water such as lakes and rivers.

ARI offers these tips for drivers:

  1. Drive slowly – The best way to avoid skidding out of control is to operate your vehicle at a slower speed. A slower speed will even give you more time to react to the effects of black ice
  2. Don’t slam the brakes – While it may be a natural instinct to slam on your brakes, this will only cause your car to lose control and slide even more. Tap the brake pedal lightly instead of pushing down hard on it.
  3. Maintain a safe following distance – In situations like this, you need to extend you following distance to ensure you will have ample time to react to the motorist ahead especially if they begin to lose control.
  4. Look for trouble spots ahead – If you have an idea that there may be black ice ahead (if you see cars ahead of you sliding, for example), downshift to a lower gear before you come onto the black ice. The lower gear will force you to drive more slowly and it will give you better control of your car.
  5. As soon as your car begins to slide on black ice, take your foot off the gas pedal – In fact, the last thing you want to do is give your vehicle more gas. It is very important to slow down when you are driving on black ice or in any other winter road conditions.

The Evolving Cyberrisk Landscape and the Insurance Industry

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Cyberrisk

Rapidly developing computer technologies and the unrelenting evolution of cyberrisks present one of the biggest challenges to the (re)insurance sector today. Liabilities from cyberattacks and threats to the data security of cloud computing and social media have become key emerging risks for carriers. The unprecedented rise in cyberattacks, in addition to the threat cyberrisk poses to global supply chains, has seen the cyberinsurance market grow significantly in recent years.

Client demand for cyber coverage has been growing, on average, 30% annually in the United States over the past several years, according to Marsh. While demand varies by industry, the one constant has been that more clients are investigating and analyzing existing traditional insurance coverage and whether they need standalone cyberrisk insurance coverage.

Because cyberrisk is associated with the use of technology and the handling of all data and information, the threat transcends a company’s information technology (IT) department as well as what is confined to the internet. To help overcome some misconceptions that still exist for cyberrisks, some clarity around business exposures is needed to understand the scope of the threat.

Cyberattacks pose a danger to global supply chains

Cyberrisks are not isolated and are usually connected to other risks. Many companies that are exposed to cyberrisks are, for example, also exposed in turn to risks to their supply chain. Due to technological innovation and advances, many parts of a company’s or industry’s supply chain have become interconnected and automated.

Most commercial entities today are exposed to these risks as a growing number of businesses become more interconnected globally. A single cyberattack has the potential to put an entire company’s supply chain at risk. Therefore, cybersecurity and supply chain risk management must be considered in conjunction with one another.

There are a range of risks when it comes to online/computer security. Cyberattacks can result in first party liability, including business interruption, computer security breaches, privacy breaches of confidential information and even third-party liability losses. Technology failures have begun to outpace adverse weather, fire and social unrest as the major force in disrupting a corporate supply chain, according to a recent Guy Carpenter report.

Everyone is at risk – individuals, companies and governments

In 2014, cyber issues have become more of a concern for companies that once felt they had relatively little exposure. In fact, cyberattacks were ranked fifth among the top five global risks in terms of likelihood in this year’s World Economic Forum’s annual Global Risks 2014 report.

Governments consider cyberattacks to be among the most serious economic and national security challenges now facing them. And through the ubiquitous use of the internet, mobile devices and social media, companies of all sizes and in all nations are now finding themselves at risk of falling prey to the full range of cyber perils. Such attacks can run from hackers shutting down a company’s network, gaining access to customers’ and employees’ personal and financial information, to the theft of business trade secrets.

More data laws and regulations in place

High-profile data breaches and other cybersecurity incidents have become more commonplace with increasingly onerous outcomes. Target, one of the largest retailers in the United States, suffered a massive cyberbreach late last year which involved the theft of approximately 40 million credit and debit card account details as well as personal data of nearly 70 million customers. The breach reportedly occurred when hackers used the retailer’s heating and cooling vendor’s system to navigate their way into the retailer’s records. The resulting publicity cost the company a significant amount in lost sales, loss of reputation, class action lawsuits, and may have contributed to the ouster of the chief executive officer. And most recently, a U.S.-based online auction site announced that hackers accessed the company’s 145 million user accounts and urged customers to change their passwords.

More recently, home improvement chain Home Depot became the victim of another credit card data breach and the FBI is reportedly investigating cyberattacks at some of the largest banks in the United States.

As cyber incidents affect both consumers and institutions, governments everywhere are putting more data privacy laws and regulations in place in regard to disclosure and other related safeguards. In the United States, there are laws that require the protection of both personal financial and health information. Last year, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which oversees publicly-traded companies, adopted a directive requiring certain regulated financial institutions and creditors to adopt and implement identity theft programs in light of the new cyber threats.

Risk mitigation and insurance

With governments considering and enacting new laws in response to the rising number of cyber events, companies, especially those in the United States, are taking a closer look at cyberrisk mitigation, including insurance coverage of breaches and attacks.

Media reports of serious data breaches have prompted more companies to buy cyber coverage of $100 million or more compared to the prior year, Marsh said in its March 2014 report Benchmarking Trends: Interest in Cyber Insurance Continues to Climb.

Traditional insurance products often do not cover risks that cover damages resulting from an incident like a computer breach.

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As such, specific cyber liability insurance may be necessary.

The very process of applying for cyberrisk insurance is a constructive exercise for raising awareness and identifying potential vulnerabilities.

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By engaging in that process, a company can perform a review of information security protocols with respect to access control, physical security, incident response and business continuity planning.

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As a result, businesses and other institutions are finding that cyberinsurance products have been broadened to include coverage that now addresses nearly all aspects of technology-based risk faced by today’s companies. Carriers have been adapting their policies to include a variety of loss prevention and risk mitigation tools, ranging from turnkey breach response teams to pre-emptive risk analytics.

As cyberthreats become more severe, more frequent, and continue to change along with technological advances, the (re)insurance industry will continue to stay one step ahead by creating new forms of cyberrisk coverage to meet the needs of their clients.

Taking Steps to Douse Factory Fire Risks

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The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) reports that property losses at U.S. factories total nearly $1 billion annually. Between 2006-2010, about 42,800 industrial or manufacturing property fires in the utility, defense, agriculture, and mining industries were reported to U.S. fire departments each year, as well as 22 deaths and 300 injuries each year, according to the NFPA.

“Fire is the No. 1 preventable disaster at manufacturing facilities,” Cindy Slubowski, vice president and head of manufacturing at Zurich, said in a statement. “Most fires are preventable, and the risks can be reduced dramatically.”

In recognition of National Fire Prevention Week (Oct. 5-11), Zurich recommends that factory owners implement a pre-fire plan, starting with these steps:

When initial fire prevention efforts fail, automatic sprinklers are an effective secondary line of defense. They not only can protect property from fire damage, but they also play a major role in helping reduce injuries and fatalities. According to the NFPA, sprinklers have a 97% success rate in controlling fires when sprinklers operate during the blaze.

“Sprinklers are a proven method of keeping fires from raging out of control, which gives building occupants a greater chance to evacuate without injury,” Slubowski said. “On top of that, firefighters face fewer risks while working inside the building to completely extinguish the fire.” She added that insurers can help building owners develop a pre-fire plan that fits their particular manufacturing facility.

In its white paper, “Loss Prevention,” Zurich recommends weekly checks for factories including:

•     Visually checking fire protection control valves that are fitted with breakable seals to verify that they are open. Include valves inside ceilings, in pits, and at fire pumps.
•     Starting and running electric fire pumps via pressure drop for at least 10 minutes and diesel fire pumps for at least 30 minutes, exercising both sets of batteries. Verify that the diesel fire pump’s fuel tank is at least two-thirds full.
•     For dry pipe, preaction, and deluge sprinkler systems, check gauges for proper air pressure to verify that the systems have not tripped. Also check their enclosures for adequate heat to prevent freezing.

Common causes and prevention measures: