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Kelly Ostler-Coyle, head of communications and stakeholder relations at Flood Re (a UK government-backed flood insurance scheme) highlighted the challenge of flood claims. “When Flood Re started, if you’d had a previous flood claim, it was really hard to get insurance… the premium, and the excess would be so high that it would be almost like self-insuring,” she said.

Addressing flood risk now requires a focus on long-term resilience. Ostler-Coyle stressed: “We need a housing stock that’s going to be there in many years’ time, that isn’t going to have to be continually rebuilt because of flooding.” She warned of the ripple effect of development on flood risk: “The more you build over, the less there is for the rain to absorb, so we need to be building with flood risk in mind… even if you protect one new area, it could run down the hill and affect a village that’s never been flooded before.”

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Old IT frameworks are making insurers less competitive, slowing down product launches and innovation, from customer experience to operational efficiency.  

Meanwhile, the insurance sector is investing 70% of its IT budget to sustain these outdated systems.  

Read our whitepaper to gain expert insights from Charles Taylor InsureTech, Oracle and Zurich as they explain how insurers can modernise their systems without the big cost or BAU disruption of core replacement. 

Find out how a middle layer modernisation strategy can help you: 

•  Configure insurance products faster 
•  Achieve system interoperability  
•  Connect easily to sales channels 
•  Integrate third-party APIs 
•  Improve operational efficiency 
•  Improve customer experience 
•  Scale easier  
•  Be agile and innovative   

Download the whitepaper to learn how to modernise smarter and faster.

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• Researching local markets to understand key industries and risks
• Building expertise in dominant regional sectors
• Partnering with underwriters who specialise in local risks
• Customising portfolios to reflect regional exposure
• Adapting communication styles to suit local business culture
• Using regional data and loss patterns to guide decisions
• Offering products aligned with local regulations and threats
• Fostering long-term community relationships
• Providing education on region-specific risk management
• Staying responsive to local market and regulatory changes
• Ensuring locally accessible claims support
• Respecting cultural and language preferences where applicable

Adapting commercial strategies

Beyond regional knowledge, Corner emphasised that brokers must also rethink their commercial models to remain agile in a competitive landscape. “The commercial landscape is shifting rapidly, with changing client behaviours and increasing competition… brokers need to be reassessing pricing models, improving operational efficiency, and exploring new distribution channels to stay ahead,” he said.

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6. Take the time to shop 

As you may have noticed from the average premiums of different auto insurers, there can be a wide disparity in premium pricing. Do not rush to procure car insurance – like buying your motor, this is a considered purchase. Make an informed choice by checking the offerings of several insurers, comparing their prices, discounts, features, and reviews, then choose the one that best fits your needs and budget.  

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Having done his due diligence on the campaign, it wasn’t a personal connection to the disease that convinced him but rather some of the statistics around dementia. “Sadly, so many families are affected by dementia in one form or another,” he said. “What stood out to me, was that it’s probably the number one killer in the Western world, certainly in the UK where almost a million people are living with dementia right now.

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Defamation: Key risks brokers should watch for

Content featuring real names, likenesses, or personal opinions can create legal exposure. Brokers play a critical role in risk assessment. According to Wood: “When brokers are evaluating and mitigating potential liability risks related to the use of real names, likenesses, or personal opinions in content, they should thoroughly assess several factors. First and foremost, the content itself must be scrutinised to determine if there is a potential for defamatory issues to arise.”

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From intuition to data-driven brokering

Brokers are under pressure to deliver faster, tailored solutions, and AI could assist underwriting. Simon Hughes, SVP, global distribution & general manager UK at Cowbell, explained: “So the key thing is being able to use the data and make it intelligible. We gather about 1,000 different data points in every single business that we underwrite… AI tools allow us to get that data, put the answer in a tangible format, and use it to the benefit of our underwriting capability.”

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“We looked at 14 pools, different pools around the world, [and] most of these pools do not bring focus to the importance of resilience,” said Golnaraghi. “In fact, most of them, because of solidarity based principles, allow people to live in high-risk zones.”

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Undoubtedly, GenAI can give a competitive edge, by speeding up operations for instance. But this fast-evolving technology poses new risks to data privacy, intellectual property or sound decision making. While businesses are increasingly looking to engage with the new opportunities that AI offers, many are simultaneously grappling to understand and manage the full risk landscape that it operates within.

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“Human-centric leaders are inclusive, empathetic, and driven by a purpose beyond profit, and offer their employees flexibility and an environment of psychological safety where their health and wellbeing are respected so they can perform at their best,” the report said.

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