Loss control risk management, the next big opportunity for insurers globally

By Cynthia Ezekwe.

As the world continually experiences technological advancements, comprehensive management of new and emerging risks is fast becoming a necessity for any company aiming to ensure compliance and maintain a strong financial position.

This, according to industry experts, is why solutions such as loss control risk management  could become the next big opportunity for insurers.

Insurance loss control is a risk management technique that seeks to reduce the possibility that a loss will occur and reduce the severity of those that do occur. A loss control programme helps policyholders reduce claims, and insurance companies reduce losses through safety and risk management information and services.

In this regard, insurers can leverage big data and machine learning algorithms to analyse vast amounts of information and identify risks more accurately, enabling them to make better decisions and offer more personalised policies.

In a recent webinar tagged, “Insurance Risk Management: Past, Present & Future” David Da Costa, CEO of Risk Control Technologies, a leading provider of loss control and safety software platforms to the insurance industry, pointed out that the prospect of an efficient loss control system allows carriers to do more than just the bare minimum. He noted that it would enable them to help clients mitigate risks, using the data to predict and get ahead of prospective issues.

Da Costa said, “The reality is, once you actually have that rich loss control data, and not just from physical surveys, but from a larger data set now that we’ve increased your coverage, there’s so many things that you can do with that.’’

He added,“So just to highlight one or two examples, a lot of our clients work with their actuarial departments where they’re joined at the hip, essentially. And they’re constantly taking that data and working with the actuaries to combine it with claims data to create better predictors of risk or of claims.’’

The Risk Control Technologies chief implored insurers to seize the potential gold mine of loss control risk management, and  implement models that can mitigate potential losses well before they occur.

Martina Conlon, head of property & casualty insurance at Datos Insights, a business consulting firm,  stressed that data has now become king in regard to carriers managing their risks.

Conlon noted further that loss control departments are on the verge of being able to transform an organisation and make better predictions about loss experiences.

The insurance expert spoke effusively about the prospect of the space, stating: “It’s also an exciting time for loss control departments and loss control overall within insurance organisations. But modern loss control technologies really are positioned to improve efficiency, reduce claims, increase customer engagement, and leverage data to make better predictions about your loss experience.”

She added that the  potential gains offer a clear incentive for carriers, who could well reap the rewards of the burgeoning technology to predict potential losses more accurately than ever before.