Sign Up Now for Free Web-seminar

ASK “WHY?”: The Application of Predictive Modeling to your Insurance Business

November 13/ 2:30 pm EST
and
November 14/ 11:00 am EST

Rather than asking ”What” went on last quarter, get at the reasons “Why” the quarter went as it did and improve your underwriting results. Everyone has data, but not everyone has the technical know-how to dig deep in your data for trends and correlations. Knowing these trends and correlations can aid your insurance company in matching pricing action with underwriting standards.

In this free web-seminar, allow us to introduce a BRAND-NEW CUTTING-EDGE SOLUTION to:

· Show how you can deal with your data more effectively, through visualization and dashboards

· Leave your technical worries behind - view our example of predictive analysis from a non-techie viewpoint

· Learn how actuaries can use the trends and correlations to make territorial and rating relativity adjustments

· Marry your underwriting standards to your updated rating plan

· Upgrade your pricing and underwriting guides to attract lower risk members of each of your classes

· Provide alerts when unusual activity (policy or claim) is occurring

· Increase your company’s efficiency and profitability

Featured Speakers:

Badri Narasimhan, President, Rulester, Inc.

Rulester, Inc. is a Chicago company founded by Badri Narasimhan. Mr. Narasimhan has developed a number of analytic solution tools and is a veteran of Insurity, a Choicepoint company.

Kimberley Ward, FCAS, MAAA, Partner, Windsor Strategy Partners

Windsor Strategy Partners, LLC, is an actuarial consulting firm based in New Jersey. Ms. Ward works from their suburban Chicago branch office. She specializes in property casualty pricing and product management.

Email your name, company, phone number, and session preference to kward@wspactuaries.com to register for the seminar.

Slow as Molasses Housing Market Affects Title Insurance Profits

According to a new report by AM Best, title insurers are experiencing losses as an industry for the first time in 17 years. This translates to a $84.5 million loss.

Factors contributing to the loss are similar to the issues raised in my last post on title insurance and include a large slowdown in sales of title insurance as properties languish on the market ( 10.4 months of inventory on the market, 33.1% drop in housing starts). Also contributing is inadequate loss reserving practices earlier this decade and agent fraud and embezzlement.

Though expenses are rising, the increase is due to falling premium revenues rather than a real increase in expenses. In my opinion, this is due to increasing levels of title recording automation at the county level, allowing title insurers to hold the line on their expenses due to running the title plant itself. Keeping expenses in alignment with premium revenues is a key challenge for title insurers.

The outlook for title insurers is iffy with the continuing housing adjustments.

You can see a free excerpt from the report or purchase the full copy.

New Credential For Kim

Just a quick self-congratulatory post to share with you. I have a new credential - the Certified Associate in Project Management. The credential is the lowest level that the Project Management Institute confers and involves having 1500 hours of experience being a part of a project management team (or 23 hours of education on project management) and taking a 3 hour exam on the material in the Project Management Body of Knowledge manual.

My project management experience is primarily the project I did at CNA in the 90's building the system and methods of measuring the asbestos, pollution, and mass tort exposures.

My purposes in sitting for this exam and getting the credential was to (1) learn more about project management for the benefit of my clients and (2) perhaps it will give me an edge when I bid on USDA crop insurance projects.

So, congratulations to me!