Video presentation
ICMIF/Americas Annual Conference 2018 session
In 2016 and 2017, two catastrophic loss events hit the Americas region: Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico and the Fort McMurray wildfires in Canada. These presentations look at how two cooperative insurers coped with business continuity, loss mitigation and claims management in the face of these catastrophic events. Read how it impacted different aspects of their businesses, including employees, physical operations, reinsurance, and their cooperative owner networks, and learn what worked and which lessons were learned from their business continuity plans.
The impact of Hurricane Maria and claims management
Hurricane Maria had a huge impact on Puerto Rico when it hit the island in September 2017. It was not just the loss of lives and destruction of property, but also longer lasting impacts, such as power and communication outages. Economic losses were estimated at USD 41 billion and there was an unprecedented impact on the Puerto Rican insurance industry. After the hurricane hit, Cooperativa de Seguros Múltiples immediately activated its business continuity plan.
The main element of the plan looked at an adjustment to how it addressed and managed claims, such as reinforcing expert teams; expanding call centre capacity; and moving to utilising technological platforms. Communication and accessibility were the biggest challenges in Seguros Múltiples’ claims handling. To expedite the settlement of claims, a priorities matrix was developed, for the identification, management and addressing of claims. Seguros Múltiples launched a number of initiatives to support the claims handing for clients in the cooperative movement. Despite the challenges, the company remained committed to promptly process and pay claims of its insureds and help in the rebuilding of Puerto Rico.
Presenter:
Juan Lugo Meléndez, Executive President, Cooperativa de Seguros Múltiples (Puerto Rico)
Leashing a CAT: 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire
The 2016 Fort McMurray wildfires outbreak in Alberta was the costliest disaster in Canadian history (CAD 9.9 billion in costs and CAD 3.6 billion in insured losses). Initially, six neighbourhoods and 2,400 homes were destroyed. The first response from The Co-operators involved four steps: set up a disaster queue in their Claims Contact Centre; use technology (e-mail and social media) proactively to reach out to clients; mobilise major event teams and property teams; and set up 11 evacuation centres within 24 hours.
The size and complexity of the catastrophe increased the initial challenges that The Co-operators faced, such as identifying the technology resources necessary for this response and also long-term claims handling. The length of the evacuation and the isolated location of Fort McMurray were also challenging as well as the education of clients for their re-entry when the evacuation period had finished.
Presenter:
Paul Hanna, Executive Vice President, Member Relations, Governance and Corporate Services, and Karen Flamand, National Claims Director - Property, The Co-operators (Canada)
More information
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