In this edition of “Focus”, WRIN.tv speaks with Bob Rusbuldt, President & CEO of the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (IIABA) about the health of “Independent Agents”, which Mr. Rusbuldt describes as “robust and well.” Mr. Rusbuldt notes an Agency Universe Study of the independent agency system, conducted by the “Big I”, which found that revenues are up, …

Fragmentation is a major issue within the insurance industry today, according to Phil Reynolds, CEO & Co-Founder of BriteCore. Traditionally carriers sold products through agents, and were backed by reinsurers. Now, insurtechs are challenging traditional distribution and underwriting models, while reinsurers are going directly to the market through MGAs (Managing General Agents). There is a lot of flux. As a …

Brian Elowe, Marsh’s U.S. Client Executive Leader, reviews the key findings from the 14th annual Excellence in Risk Management report, published jointly by Marsh and RIMS. He sees a gap between the use of ‘disruptive technologies’ and the understanding of the risks that come with it. Mr. Elowe, who co-authored the report, begins by recognizing examples of ‘disruptive technologies’ such …

Soft market conditions, low interest rates and regulatory oversight were among the issues Tim NeCastro, President and CEO-designate of Erie Indemnity, discussed at the 2016 PCI Meeting in Dallas. He expresses concern about the “strident tone” from Federal regulators and the broad brush targeting the banking and financial services industry unfairly including the insurance industry. Mr. NeCastro says the Erie’s …

Leslie Rippley, VP of Commercial and Agricultural Lines at AAIS, sees a lot of change in the small business insurance segment with regard to technology, appetite, and a continuing flow of capital. Ms. Rippley says the carriers that introduced BOP (Business Owner Policy) products in the 1980s once dominated the small business category. Now, new entrants, news capital, new distribution …

In a new report, the Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers (CIAB) says Commercial Property-Casualty rates decreased by an average of 3.9 percent in the second quarter of 2016. Carriers appear to be pricing new business aggressively, while trying to hold rates steady on renewals. According to CIAB President & CEO Ken Crerar, The Council is keeping a close eye …

According to Jamie Miller, Head of Property North America at Swiss Re, the biggest factors driving market conditions in the property market are over capacity driven by a lack of natural catastrophe losses. He sees a large number of carriers entering the excess and surplus (E&S) lines market as a result. With favorable market conditions and low cat losses, oversupply …

In this edition of ACORD Tech Talk, host Johnell Johnson welcomes back the Managing Editor of Agency Nation, Ryan Hanley to discuss how social media can support the four stages of insurance sales. According to Mr. Hanley, traditional selling included interrupting the life of “unconnected generation consumer” with a commercial ad or phone call.  But efforts like cold calling do not …

      WRIN.tv spoke with Marsh’s Cyber Product Leader, Bob Parisi, during the recent RIMS Conference in New Orleans, about the pervasive nature of cyber threat and what risk managers can do to manage the risk. While it is hard to quantify the cyber threat to American businesses, Mr. Parisi says, “any company that touches and handles confidential information, …

John Merkovsky, Group Head of Risk Services at Willis, spoke with WRIN.tv during the 2015 RIMS Conference in New Orleans, about the latest in risk management analytics, and the need to unlock the mysteries surrounding their benefits. Risk Managers are looking for more information and certainty so they can make better and informed decisions. Mr. Merkovsky says risk analytics help …

    Arthur J. Gallagher CEO Pat Gallagher spoke with WRIN.tv during the 2015 RIMS Conference in New Orleans. Here, he discusses the top issues facing risk managers today, including cyber risk, healthcare legislation…and more. According to Mr. Gallagher, the most important issue facing risk managers is cyber risk, from “being hacked to just having information escape. “   While there …

Aon released its Global Risk Management Survey during the RIMS Conference in New Orleans.  Here, Rory Moloney, CEO of Aon Global Risk Consulting, reviewed the results of the survey, the “Risk Issues” facing companies today, and how they are affecting the role of risk manager. Mr. Moloney says the Top 5 Global Risks included: Brand and Damage to Reputation, Economic, …

Dr. Robert Hartwig, President of the insurance Information Institute (III), sees cyber insurance as a bog opportunity for insurers. Ina recent III poll of senior executives in the insurance industry, 80% view cyber as a major growth opportunity for property-casualty insurers and reinsurers Dr. Hartwig mentions that number of insurers have rolled out policies in the U.S. and other countries. …

Jeff Hubbard, Director of Environmental Practice at Towerstone, a wholesale insurance broker and MGA, discusses emerging environmental risks associated with drilling for oil and gas. Hydraulic fracturing (Fracking) and the risk to water supply have been concerns, but environmental risks to air quality are now complicated by government regulations at the federal and state level. The most pressing environmental issues …

In this edition of Cyber Risk – The Threat…The Response (sponsored by Worldwide Facilities, Inc.), guest Steve Vallone, a Broker at Worldwide Facilities and Serene Davis, a Professional Liability Underwriter at Beazley, discuss privacy breach insurance. According to Ms. Davis, “Privacy breach insurance is…a liability policy…that is secondary to first-party coverages…When a breach occurs, there are multiple steps…and large costs involved in …

In this edition of WRIN.tv Rewind, we revisit a discussion with Pat Gallagher, Chairman, President and CEO of Arthur J. Gallagher. Here, he explains the evolution of the role of broker, and why alternative capital is not so “new”, but a creative way to solve risk management problems. To be viable, Mr. Gallagher says brokers need to understand their client’s …

In this edition of the D&O & Life Sciences series, sponsored by RT Specialty Group, host Michael Garofalo, SVP in the National Life Science Practice at RT Specialty, welcomes Kevin LaCroix, an Executive Vice President at RT ProExec, a division of RT Specialty.  The topic is D&O issues for life science companies. “Life Science companies are vulnerable to securities litigation,” …