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Case study

Proactive portfolio risk management, harnessing insights from data control

25/07/2022

The Challenge

A multinational information technology services company significantly expanded its property portfolio through asset acquisition, prompting the formation of a new entity and creating an urgent need for integration. Leadership felt there was an opportunity to optimise and drive cost savings with their current carrier, but the incumbent insurance underwriter provided insufficient visibility to the data and their analytics. This created an unsustainable situation that prevented the business  from assessing performance accurately and impacted their ability to make key decisions on risk structure.

The Solution

We worked in close tandem with the business to assess the situation and enhance their insurance program, adopting a more proactive approach to risk management that reinforced the importance of the organisation having visibility and access to their data. The goal was to interrogate pricing and drive better placement, retaining the underwriter relationship if possible.

There were three critical components to our approach:

  • Unpacking the value chain to identify critical components that could impact coverage.
  • Analysing the underlying data and engineering details that could have a compounding impact on risk and quality.
  • Reviewing the portfolio strategically to identify opportunities, leveraging Risk Finance Optimisation (RFO).

The first step was to invest in proprietary data collection and analysis, rather than rely on insurer-issued reports. This new information-rich source enabled broad and deep analyses, including engineering and site surveys, business interruption studies, business continuity modelling, CAT modelling; and helped define what’s optimal.

Our analysis recommended that existing business continuity coverages were correct, but revealed overstated business interruption values that could be improved for cost savings. RFO analysis further highlighted that premiums are likely too high. We then worked to improve their risk engineering knowledge and direct spending more strategically.

The Results

The comprehensive analysis prepared for the insurer resulted in a 30% premium reduction, translating to $3MM in savings per year. The program also underscored the importance of knowledge and control over data, empowering the entire team to make more informed, intelligent decisions on insurance spending. At the completion of our work, the integrated property insurance and risk management program enabled the business to achieve cost savings, broaden terms and conditions and manage a robust loss control program.

“We were previously unable to determine whether we were getting sufficient value out of our risk program. Marsh helped to establish clarity and understanding: the why behind the buy.”

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