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London IFED secures first-ever Serious Crime Prevention Order against notorious insurance scammer

A Serious Crime Prevention Order was lodged against Sediqi at the same court Feb. 23. This order, a first for the IFED, means that Sediqi will be subject to a number of restrictions following his release from prison this month, to prevent him from committing further offences.

“An important milestone”

Under the order’s restrictions, which were set in conjunction with the Lifetime Offender Management Unit (LOMU) of the City of London Police, Sediqi will have limitations on the number of mobile phones and current bank accounts which he can hold. He will also be required to inform the LOMU of any changes to his address and other personal circumstances. Breach of the order is a criminal offence and punishable by up to five years imprisonment and an unlimited fine.

“This result not only represents an important milestone for IFED, but shows that repeat offenders will be dealt with robustly,” IFED detective chief inspector Tom Hill said. “Sediqi targeted legitimate businesses and used the identities of unsuspecting members of the public for his own financial gain. Thankfully, the Serious Crime Prevention Order handed to him will help ensure that he does not continue with this fraudulent activity, and prevent further innocent people from falling victim to his schemes.”

After a legitimate claims management company discovered that he had posed as its director and offered to refer claims to a solicitors firm in exchange for a fee, Sediqi was referred to IFED for investigations. In total, he made £26,070 in referral fees, and detectives found that he was also linked to the bank accounts that received the payments.

IFED and Aviva, the UK insurer that Sediqi defrauded, launched a separate investigation that linked him and two others to 62 fraudulent motor insurance claims. Sediqi and his partners operated by fraudulently opening bank accounts using stolen IDs or fictitious details to take out insurance policies with Aviva, resulting in a total of £200,000 in compensation defrauded from the company.

“This is a watershed moment for the insurance industry and something which Aviva welcomes and applauds. Sediqi is a career criminal who balanced significant greed against a likelihood of being caught and the potential outcome if convicted. He was willing to re-offend because he thought he knew the consequences. That has changed and, if breached, the Serious Crime Prevention Order carries an immediate term of imprisonment,” Aviva special investigations unit manager Carl Mather said.

Mather also said that Aviva has fully supported the investigation and the steps taken to secure the order. With the court granting it, insurance fraud impact on the general public has been acknowledged, while the restrictions imposed on Sediqi are specifically designed to prevent him from continuing to target insurers. In the future, it will also serve as a deterrent for others looking to dabble in insurance fraud.

“Aviva remains resolute in its determination to detect and prosecute fraud and in so doing will continue to protect our honest customers from paying for the criminal actions of others,” Mather said.

A recent Broker Pulse study from RSA Insurance found that brokers are increasingly concerned and are calling for additional support from the industry with regards to insurance fraud.

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HCA Healthcare UK joins insurance body

From its foundation in 1968 by cardiologist Dr Thomas Frist, HCA has built a network of over 30 facilities in London and Manchester. Birmingham is its latest centre, with the location opening this year. The healthcare provider works with over 3,000 consultants, all of whom are experts in their respective fields and at the forefront of global clinical excellence.

“A strong voice in our industry”

“We are excited to join amii as a corporate member,” HCA UK vice president of corporate sales Soraya Chamberlain said. “amii has a strong voice in our industry and we genuinely believe we have a valuable and influential role to play in supporting intermediaries, insurers and corporates.”

Chamberlain said that the HCA UK will bring some value where it can and be part of the positive influence and leverage amii can bring to the market.

“There’s never been a better time to join the association,” she said.

The association saw a record-breaking expansion during 2022, with tracking for growth this year set to be equally strong. As the voice of intermediaries and insurance members, amii promotes and advises individuals and companies on health insurance, protection, and well-being services. Including HCA UK, amii now has over 135 members after welcoming 16 new intermediaries and four new corporates in 2022, the highest recruitment in a single year for the association.

“We are thrilled that HCA Healthcare has joined the amii family. It is great to see an internationally recognised healthcare provider join and in doing so recognise that the breadth and depth of amii reaches far beyond health insurance,” amii executive chairman David Middleton said. “As we enter 2023 on the back of record-breaking membership recruitment and a rebrand in 2022, we are confident that our rapid expansion will continue and we look forward to working with new associate organisations.”

Middleton was appointed to the post in 2021, succeeding Stuart Scullion.

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Artificial intelligence drives 62% of insurers to reduce headcount – survey

“When we look to computers or we look to technology to make an organisation more profitable and more efficient … some of these organisations have employed, in some cases, mountains of people to be able to do some of this work,” said Jeff DeVerter, chief technology evangelist, Rackspace Technology.

“Some of the low-level analyst work that used to be done in large spreadsheets, that used to be done in some specific tooling for the industry, maybe we’re finding now that AI and ML is actually able to do the work of a lot of those folks who were effectively manually doing work before.”

While DeVerter said he did not see the senior underwriter of the future being replaced by AI, he did predict an end to “armies of underwriters”.

“Should you worry? I’d redirect that and say, you have indispensable industry knowledge, but the job you have today is probably going to change, and so you’ve got to change with it,” DeVerter said.

“Detroit is a great example, in the auto industry you had companies make some changes as robotics came in, and had individuals changed their skilling, they would have been a lot better off, but you just can’t keep doing things the way we’ve always done them.

“The industry knowledge is indispensable, that’s needed to train models, it’s needed to move forward and needed to take those models and then figure out how we can monetise them even better in the future.”

The “smart individuals are reading the tea leaves and figuring out what skills they need to adopt”, DeVerter said.

Insurers face an AI talent challenge

Some insurers may be looking to reduce headcount as a result of AI and technology gains, but a talent and skill shortage in the area was seen as the “greatest challenge” where it came to adoption so far, cited by 67% of insurer respondents. Nevertheless, 90% of insurers said they had grown their AI and ML workforce in the past 12 months.

The businesses that are ahead have been looking at the technology for at least five years, DeVerter said.

Other challenges included a lack of new business use cases (58%), algorithm or model failure (52%), and lack of technology infrastructure (52%).

Eighty one per cent (81%) of insurer respondents said that AI and ML now led their IT and business strategy, compared to 63% for cybersecurity and 58% for cloud.

What benefits are insurers seeing from AI?

More than half (52%) of insurers said they had realised “substantial benefits” from AI/ML already, according to the Rackspace survey, with another 23% saying they’d seen modest benefits.  Meanwhile, 25% said it was too early to tell.  Insurers listed benefits as follows:

•            81% risk reduction, increased understanding of business/customers

•            79% increased sales

•            77% personalised marketing

•            75% increased productivity

•            73% increased revenue streams, operation cost reduction

•            69% improved customer satisfaction

•            67% faster time to profitability, reduced cost of new product development, ability to hire/recruit new talent

•            65% increased innovation

Insurer IT decision makers still face AI/ML pushback from within the business

Despite reported benefits, more than half (56%) of insurance IT decision makers said they had received some form of “pushback or scrutiny” over the penetration of AI in their business.

Reluctance could stem from a “collision of the business and IT”, DeVerter said. “IT get their feathers ruffled a little bit when business comes and says, here’s this new technology that you need to implement based on this other data and storage, do we have enough?”

On the flipside, an IT department may hit hurdles when pitching use of the technology to an organisation that could view them as “server jockeys”, DeVerter said.

Blockchain, IoT, and cloud technology were said to be more important than AI and ML in Rackspace’s survey two years ago, but these have since slid down insurers’ lists of priorities.

Do insurers trust AI?

  • Over a third (38%) said they strongly trust AI and ML results, with more (42%) only slightly trusting the results.
  • About as many (38%) strongly versus 33% slightly though there were enough checks and balances in place to avoid any negative consequences of AI/ML
  • 44% strongly vs. 35% slightly thought there was sufficient governance in place to safeguard against AI and ML misuse

AI and ML a “systemic wave” across sectors

Insurers’ perceptions and use of AI and ML may be shifting, but the industry is not unique in this regard.

Adoption of the technology was described as a “systemic wave” by DeVerter.

“If you look at the benefits to these projects, it’s not like, ‘hey, we’re just trying to reduce costs and move to the cloud, hey, we’re just trying to be more cautious around security or risk’ – but if you look at where this is having an impact, it’s having an impact in risk reduction across sales, marketing, productivity, revenue streams,” DeVerter said.

“It’s not just impacting every market segment in every industry and every country, but every aspect of the companies as well, so it’s a pretty exciting place to be right now.”

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Inherent Risks to lead Turkey quake damage assessment

The quakes affected an estimated 14 million people, and more than 52,000 deaths have been reported, Inherent Risks said.

Total losses from the quakes have been estimated to exceed £20.9 billion. It is estimated that insurance losses in Turkey will reach about £1 billion, but underwriters and syndicates do not yet have a full grasp of which insured properties and assets have been affected.

While damage assessments can be conducted using satellite-based geospatial techniques, this is not a substitute for an in-person approach to confirm the data, Inherent Risks said.

Over the coming weeks, Inherent Risks response consultants will deploy to four of the most impacted regions to begin the task of locating insured buildings and assets, including aviation and maritime assets, the company said.

Read more: Turkey earthquakes: Industry insured losses to exceed $1 billion

“Having deployed to many regions around the world in the wake of natural disasters, I’m extremely conscious of not placing any increased strains on local resources, or placing our teams in any unnecessary danger,” said Dan Kaine, head of risk and crisis advisory at Inherent Risks. “There is a tremendous amount of proactive planning and preparation that is involved with a deployment such as this.”

The company will conduct risk assessments, including journey planning and itinerary tracking, for all its deployed consultants, and will continue to provide logistics, communications, medical and security support. Insurance will be provided by Hotspot Cover.

In the days following the earthquakes, Inherent Risks liaised with its clients that had employees based in or travelling in the region, including Turkey’s flag carrier, Turkish Airlines.

inherent Risks was founded in 2021 as a global advisory firm specialising in medical assistance and crisis response.

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AXIS chief people officer on crafting a powerful company culture

In her role as chief people officer for AXIS, Noreen McMullan (pictured) has seen for herself what it means when an organisation truly understand that it is only as strong as its people, each bringing their own experience and expertise to the table.

“As such,” she said, “it remains a top priority to create an environment where people feel welcomed and empowered to be themselves and have the right opportunities and resources to grow their careers. This focus on talent and culture enables us to attract and retain top talent in our industry, which in turn allows us to better serve our customers, broker partners, and communities.”

DE&I – a journey worth undertaking

McMullan, who leads the global company’s human resources function and talent strategy – which includes everything related to people and culture, first discovered her passion for supporting people at work when she began her career in human resources. Starting as a recruiter, she said, she was entrusted with matching people with roles that best fit them and identifying top talent within organisations, while supporting them in their career development.

“I found that my passion was helping people find – and grow into – their careers,” she said. “When you’re passionate about supporting people, it’s not hard to find inspiration. Reflecting on the last few years, we’ve witnessed changes driven by the pandemic and the social justice movement in 2020. These events, among others, have put DE&I at the forefront of our society and challenged how businesses operate in a way that is making us better employers.”

How to expand your DE&I efforts

Looking to AXIS as an example, she highlighted how the business has significantly expanded its DE&I efforts, using a five-part approach: internal education and awareness; recruitment and mobility; career development to support diverse colleagues; industry advocacy; and measurement.

“We’ve also enhanced the overall workplace experience by shifting to a hybrid-work setup that we call Flex for Your Day,” she said. “We learned from the pandemic that our people appreciated the time at home but also missed in-person collaboration at the office. This hybrid approach was designed to help teams find that balance to drive productivity and enable our people to craft a schedule that best fits their lifestyles and needs in a more inclusive manner.

“Ultimately, it is the 2,000+ people at AXIS who inspire me and our team to continue finding meaningful and innovative ways to strengthen our culture, recruit and develop top talent, and further position AXIS as an employer of choice in our industry.”

How DE&I conversations are continuing to evolve

Touching on how DE&I conversations have developed and shaped the human resources landscape since she began her career, McMullan noted that when she first started working, DE&I wasn’t even part of the conversation. At most, it was something included in a report reviewed once a year and shelved the rest of the time. However, it’s heartening to see that organisations have come a long way since then, she said, albeit with the recognition that there is still a lot more work to be done.

“Today, more organisations including AXIS, subscribe to the belief that diversity of talent brings diversity of thought,” she said. “As a result, diverse organisations benefit from a wider range of knowledge and experience which contributes towards driving business results.

“At AXIS, DE&I continues to be a top priority and we approach this work with a bottom-line driven mentality. For example, we set a DE&I goal to achieve global gender parity in all levels of our workforce by 2025, as well as goals to increase ethnic and female senior representation.”

DE&I – an ongoing story

A DE&I journey is not about milestones or touchpoints but rather evolving and ongoing conversation and action. Looking back at her own trajectory, McMullan emphasised that more than any specific touchpoints, she’s proud of the culture that has been fostered at AXIS. It’s a culture built on mutual respect, she said, where people are empowered to share their ideas and perspectives.

“In fact, our DE&I programming was informed at the grassroots level by considering input from employees following surveys and listening sessions,” she said. This feedback provided the roadmap for our DE&I approach and is fully supported by the most senior leaders of the organisation.

“To help drive our DE&I program, we have a DEI Council comprised of employee volunteers representing a range of backgrounds and geographies. They are key agents in the employee feedback loop – engaging with colleagues across AXIS to ensure our programs resonate, represent a variety of voices, and that we continue to make progress towards our DE&I goals.”

In addition, she said, AXIS has five Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) for members and allies of the following communities: ethnically diverse employees; LGBTQ+; parents and caregivers; veterans; and women. The global firm’s ERGs host events and awareness campaigns across the organisation, creating connections and building a sense of community.

“We take pride that our culture has been recognised as one of America’s Best Midsize Employers by Forbes for two consecutive years, that we were recognised in the Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index for three years in a row, and that we were named one of Insurance Business UK’s Top Employers in 2023,” she said. “These recognitions affirm that we are on the right path, and I am energised to further our progress.”

As somebody on the frontlines of building a powerful company culture, McMullan recognises what makes a great culture stand out from the crowd – and from her perspective, it’s all built on the foundation of the individual employee.

“To me, it is when an employee is comfortable and confident enough to bring their whole self to work,” she said. “It is a culture where people can share ideas and know that they will be heard and respected – where everyone has a voice and is valued, that’s what we strive for at AXIS. We put our people first because we understand that without them, we can’t achieve our purpose which is to be there when our customers, partners, and communities need us most.”

Making this culture a reality is where initiatives such as the Dive In Festival come in. In insurance, risks are constantly evolving, and it is so easy to get caught up in your day-to-day work and life. Any time we can take time to stop and reflect on issues like DE&I is so valuable, she said, which is what the Dive In Festival provides – and AXIS is proud to be a long-time supporter and a Global Festival Partner.

“Improving DE&I is a challenge facing the entire industry – and initiatives like the Dive In Festival are great because they bring us all together in a unified effort,” McMullan said. “It’s imperative that we create forums where we can share best practices, learn from each other, and discuss topics that need to be acknowledged, despite how difficult it may be. Initiatives like the Dive In Festival will help us improve and become a stronger industry and a stronger society.”

Click here to catch up on any Dive In 2022 events you missed

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Verlingue creates dedicated media practice

The move is also part of Verlingue’s overall strategy to provide total solutions for mid to large corporate businesses across a range of specialist sectors, encompassing general insurance, trade credit, employee benefits, risk management and claims services and solutions. The practice will be based in Redhill as part of Verlingue’s growing network of offices, which includes Manchester, Egham and London, employing over 170 employees.

A growing market

“Media is a growing market, and one that has proved over the years to be fairly recession-proof, as marketing remains central to most brands growth strategies despite economic uncertainty. The sector is also constantly evolving and expanding into new digital areas – and has moved on from the days when it was just billboards, newspapers, TV and radio,” Verlingue client director Maia Olesen said.

Olesen said that the risk and complexity that media businesses face are also increasing as they receive more complex contracts and more daring film shoots and events. A complex maze around permissions, licenses and permits for the use of music and images adds up to increased propensity for legal action if these are not in order.

“Regulators and overseeing authorities are also coming down harder on influencers, highlighting the need for expert guidance and support when promoting products,” Olesen said. “The onus on influencers’ responsibilities, as they have real power to influence purchasing behaviour, is only going to increase, particularly when it comes to products targeting children.”

Verlingue Group CEO Mike Latham also stressed the importance of the firm’s expanded presence in the media sector as a key part of its growth strategy, noting that Olesen and her team have over 35 years of experience within the specialist market.

“Our focus on this sector will mirror that of all the sectors where we have a strong presence, and that is to provide our clients with holistic risk management advice, to develop targeted and relevant insurance cover, and to deliver a high quality, personal and tailored service,” he said.

As part of its growth and expansion, the firm also recently acquired insurance broker Cabinet Depeyre and underwriting agency Depeyre Solutions.

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The right and wrong way to handle mass layoffs

This is a matter of “course correction” amid the current economic climate, he said. “The types of companies that we’re seeing doing layoffs, mostly, are types of companies that got heavy during COVID. There [was] a lot of hiring for lots of different reasons, because of a business [need], but also because they were watching this digital acceleration happen, and not knowing what was next.”

How to do it the wrong way

These employers are finding there is a right way to let go of so many workers at once, and one company is facing scrutiny. Case in point: Twitter.

The company faced legal fallout recently from mass layoffs under Elon Musk’s management, including complaints from some workers that severance payments are less than promised and from other employees that the company retaliated against them for exercising protected labour rights.

A Los Angeles lawyer filed individual arbitration claims on behalf of three employees who claim the company hasn’t committed to paying them the severance they were promised before Musk acquired it.

Lisa Bloom, the lawyer for the employees, said she’s prepared to bring hundreds more such complaints on behalf of Twitter employees and contractors. Unlike lawsuits that are filed and fought over publicly, arbitrations are handled in a closed-door process.

The company was also named in two complaints to the National Labor Relations Board. In one labour board case, Twitter is accused of terminating an employees in retaliation for an unsuccessful effort with other workers to organize a strike.

The strike was planned for Nov. 17 but never took place, according to the complaint, because employees were deterred by an email sent by Musk telling them to commit to being “extremely hardcore” if they wanted to keep their jobs.

How to do it the lawful way

With all of this upheaval and change, there are some things to be aware of when attempting to do so legally, said a lawyer.

“Reports of employees finding out they have been fired by email or being locked out of their work accounts may sound like something from a dystopian nightmare. However, in light of the prevailing economic conditions, multiple tech companies have begun discarding employees by the truckload, changing the employment landscape in the process,” said Paulette Haynes, founder and managing officer of Haynes Law Firm.

“If the employer is untruthful, misleading, or even unduly insensitive, they could be on the hook for additional money. In one recent decision – Pohl v. Hudson’s Bay Company, 2022 ONSC 5230 – an employer was penalized by the court for marching an employee out the front door of the employer’s premises despite no allegations of misconduct,” she said.

“It certainly appears, now more than ever, that employers must take care when terminating employees as courts are ready to scrutinize their conduct.”

Growth on the horizon?

But in one country, many employers are thinking the opposite and the time is ripe for investments in the workforce, instead of mass terminations.

CEOs across New Zealand are investing more in talent to drive long-term transformation amid concerns on inflation and macroeconomic volatility, according to a new report.

PwC’s 26th annual Global CEO Survey, which included 142 New Zealand CEOs, found that 86% are investing in upskilling their workforce in priority areas in the next 12 months.

PwC’s findings revealed that 79% of local CEOs think global economic growth will decline in the next 12 months, while 76% believe the same thing will happen to the country’s economic growth.

This “increased pessimism” from New Zealand’s executives is “not surprising” given the challenges over the past years, according to Mark Averill, CEO and senior partner at PwC New Zealand.

Among the respondents, 38% said they feel extremely or highly exposed to inflation in the next 12 months, followed by macroeconomic volatility at 26%.

“When the survey was carried out late last year, interest rates and inflation were rising and there was widespread talk of a recession. The results clearly illustrate how much of a concern these issues are for CEOs,” said Averill.

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Davies simplifies operations, aligns across three core business units

New units, new leaders

According to the announcement, Davies Global Solutions will incorporate the firm’s high organic growth Consulting & Technology and Insurance Services divisions under a new chief executive officer to create a thousand plus global team that operates across 10 countries. The division will be led by Mark Grocott, who has been with Davies for over 20 years, holding leadership positions including chief digital officer and CEO of Consulting & Technology. Insurance Services CEO Steven Crabb will continue in his current role and report to Grocott.

Davies UK & Ireland will bring together the firm’s Claims Solutions UK & Ireland and Legal Solutions businesses under a new CEO. This new team consists of over 3,000 employees, with its members delivering claims TPA, adjusting, legal services, supply chain, technology, and ancillary services to its clients across the UK and Ireland. This new division will be led by Allison Carr, who held various senior executive roles spanning 21 years with Davies & Keoghs. Carr previously served as the CEO of Davies’ Legal Solutions arm, Keoghs. Claims Solutions UK & Ireland CEO Kath Mainon will continue in her role, reporting to Carr.

Finally, there’s Davies US, which was formed last year when the firm brought together its US claims TPA and adjusting services with its risk, audit, inspections, and actuarial services. The 1,600-plus team operates from more than 30 locations across the US. Davies launched in the US in 2018 and has expanded its service offerings through a combination of strong organic and M&A growth in recent years. Matt Burton will continue to lead the division. Burton has been with the company for eight years and previously led the firm’s global M&A program.

Staying agile

As a global business, Davies and its more than 6,500 employees will continue to operate across 10 countries, including the UK and US. It delivers professional services and technology solutions across the risk and insurance value chain, including excellence in claims, underwriting, distribution, regulation & risk, customer experience, human capital, digital transformation and change management.

Over the past decade, the firm has grown its annual revenues by more than 20-fold, investing heavily in research and development, innovation and automation, colleague development, and client service.

“Our success in recent years is linked in part to our ability to stay agile, to adapt our structure, and to provide new solutions to our clients across the world,” Davies group CEO Dan Saulter said. “As we embark on our next phase of international growth and investment, it is important that we position our business units and leadership so we can best serve our 1,500-plus clients across the globe.

“My congratulations to Allison and Mark on their respective promotions. I am pleased that once again we’ve been able to promote internally.  Investing in our people and giving them opportunities for career development is central to our success, alongside our employee ownership culture, delivered through our Davies Incentive Plan programme, our innovation lab, and our CSR focus through the Davies Foundation,” Saulter said.

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More than 160K SMEs will lack employer’s liability coverage by end of 2023 – study

According to the research, micro-businesses and SMEs were the most vulnerable to being uninsured for EL. Most sole traders with just one employee do not need EL insurance, and the research showed that larger employers with between 10 and 250 employees were more aware of their obligations.

Many of the businesses with between one and nine employees are likely to either not be aware of their responsibilities when they employ staff, or simply choose to throw caution to the wind as they seek more savings.

“A distraction from running the business”

“Senior decision-makers wear so many different hats and buying insurance at this level is often a distraction from running the business itself,” Smart Money People CEO Jacqueline Dewey said. “Therefore, we believe that many small businesses may simply be overlooking the need to add EL to their basket of insurances as they grow.”

That said, Smart Money People voiced its suspicion that there is also a second group of businesses who have previously held DL and now believe that it is a surplus to their requirements. In some circumstances, they are correct, but in most cases it’s believed to be a response to rising inflation.

“As everything from salaries to raw materials and energy bills continue to spiral, it is completely understandable that some small businesses are trying to rein in their spending. However, they need to know that employers’ liability insurance is, in most cases, a non-negotiable expense,” Dewey said.

Dewey also said that this could be an opportunity for insurers and brokers to remind small business prospects about why they need to have this insurance and what protection it can offer them. The more tailored these are to the risks associated with specific sectors or industries, the more likely these businesses are to listen.

The site also noted that insurers would be pragmatic to warn small businesses that during times of economic hardship, and driven by claims management companies’ aggressive tactics, employees may be more likely to sue their employer if they believe that it can lead to financial gain.

“Insurers know they will always face a challenge when it comes to micro and small businesses,” Dewey said. “Employers’ liability is perhaps an area where more education is required to help decision-makers at these enterprises really understand the product and more importantly, the risks associated from being without it.”

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Insurance conferences happening around the globe in 2023

The Women in Insurance Summit is a one-day event centered on the issues that matter most to women in the insurance sector. It gathers outstanding female leaders from across the industry, who share the skills and wisdom they have built up over the years on their way to the top. Among the topics they touch on are:

  • Advancing diversity and inclusion
  • Overcoming unconscious bias
  • Pay equity
  • Flexible work practices

Here’s the complete schedule of the eight Women in Insurance Summits being hosted in different parts of the world:

1. Women in Insurance Summit New Zealand

Date: February 28, 2023
Website: Women in Insurance Summit New Zealand
Venue: Hilton Auckland, Princes Wharf, 147 Quay Street, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
Speakers:

  • Tanya Clews (head of claims, partnerships, and services, Ando Insurance)
  • Lee-Ann du Toit (partner, actuarial and insurance services, Deloitte)
  • Helen Fitness (founder, Quiet Rebel Consulting)
  • Dasha Goryacheva (people and operations manager, Delta Insurance)
  • Bronwyn Kirwan (chief sales and service officer, Fidelity Life)
  • Nancye Maloni (home claims manager, AA Insurance)
  • Jo McCauley (CEO, Southern Cross Travel Insurance)
  • Beckie McCleland (chief risk officer, Partners Life)
  • Complete list of speakers

Women in Insurance Summit NZ returns as a face-to-face event this year after two years of going online. The one-day insurance conference will bring together women leaders and D&I advocates who will discuss practical strategies for success, share career development insights, and help participants build essential skills for professional advancement.

2. Women in Insurance Summit Atlanta

Date: March 2, 2023
Website: Women in Insurance Summit Atlanta
Venue: Sheraton Atlanta Hotel, 165 Courtland St NE, Atlanta, Georgia 30303, United States
Speakers:

  • Ania Caruso (Gallagher)
  • Isabelle Dumont (Cowbell Cyber)
  • Nan Fine (Markel Specialty)
  • Lawanda “Elle Michell” Hall (Intelligent Intentions LLC)
  • Casey Hartley (Everest Insurance)
  • Scott Hornsby (AmRisc)
  • Marissa Jennings (Zurich North America)
  • Angela Lee (Marsh McLennan Agency)
  • Taffy Jo Mayers (WTW)

Women in Insurance Atlanta returns this year with a live summit dedicated to empowering women and their allies, developing the next generation of leaders, and celebrating the achievements of women in insurance.

3. Women in Insurance Summit Chicago

Date: Not yet set
Website: Women in Insurance Summit Chicago
Venue: W Chicago – City Center, 172 W Adams St, Chicago, Illinois 60603, United States

Women in Insurance Chicago aims to unite the insurance industry over the common goal of diversity and empowerment. It will tackle how insurance leaders can continue to drive innovation, maintain employee engagement, and find new areas of growth and opportunity. 

4. Women in Insurance Summit Canada

Date: Not yet set
Website: Women in Insurance Summit Canada
Venue: The Carlu, 444 Yonge St #7, Toronto, Ontario M5B 2H4, Canada

Women in Insurance Canada will continue its goal of empowering women, developing a new generation of leaders, and celebrating everything that the country’s insurance industry has achieved over the course of the last twelve months. The insurance conference will feature:

  • Impactful speakers from leading insurance companies
  • Insightful sessions on hot-button topics
  • A dedicated time for networking and relationship building

5. Women in Insurance Summit Australia

Date: August 23, 2023
Website: Women in Insurance Summit Australia
Venue: The Fullerton Hotel Sydney, 1 Martin Pl, Sydney, New South Wales 2000, Australia

Women in Insurance Summit Australia will feature insightful keynote sessions, presentations, panel discussions, workshops, and networking activities led by influential leaders from the industry. Highlights include:

  • Presentations on innovation and digital transformation
  • Personal branding
  • Hybrid management strategies
  • Inclusive decision making
  • Mental wellness at the executive level

6. Women in Insurance Summit New York

Date: Not yet set
Website: Women in Insurance Summit New York
Venue: 583 Park Avenue, New York, New York 10065, United States

Women in Insurance Summit New York will provide insurance professionals with an opportunity to build new bonds and explore leadership strategies. The insurance conference also aims to inspire these professionals to make changes in their careers and work with a purpose in an industry that is constantly innovating to be more digital and provide equal opportunities for men and women.

7. Women in Insurance Summit Los Angeles

Date: Not yet set
Website: Coming soon!
Venue: Sheraton Grand Los Angeles, 711 S Hope St, Los Angeles, California 90017, United States

California’s Women in Insurance Summit moves from San Francisco to Los Angeles providing a venue for insurance professionals to reconnect face-to-face for a day-long summit. The insurance conference will bring together women leaders and their allies in the industry and discuss a variety of pressing insurance topics, including gender equality and technological innovation.

8. Women in Insurance Summit UK

Date: Not yet set
Website: Women in Insurance Summit UK
Venue: The Tower Hotel, St Katharine’s Way, London E1W 1LD, United Kingdom

The last event in the year for the series, Women in Insurance UK builds on the gains it has made last year, returning in November to provide participants with an opportunity to connect with some of the industry’s elite leaders and engage in deep conversations around establishing an inclusive culture that supports diverse professionals.

Specialty Insurance Summit
Date: April 27, 2023
Website: Specialty Insurance Summit
Venue: Arcadian Loft Toronto, 401 Bay Street, Simpson Tower, 8th floor, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Speakers:

  • Paul Croft (COO, Canada, Aon)
  • Simon Hlywa (president, CEO, Calefy Inc. & Fuse Insurance Ltd)
  • Mohamed Jama (Jones DesLauriers Insurance Management Inc.)
  • Fady Kamel (All Risks Insurance Brokers)
  • Joshua Krenus (president & CEO, Alteri Insurance)
  • Kevin Lea (president, Fuse Insurance Ltd)
  • David Leadbetter (president & CEO, Avail Group Of Companies)
  • Michael Loeters (SVP – commercial insurance, PROLINK)

Insurance Business’ first-ever Specialty Insurance Summit will gather the biggest names in the specialty insurance market, who will share their secrets to success and give updates on how the sector is changing. They will discuss hot topics in the specialty insurance line, including: 

  • Growing your business in a time of economic upheaval
  • Mastering cybercrime insurance
  • Managing catastrophe coverage

Participants can also get direct access to more than 20 MGAs, giving them the opportunity to build their network and develop actionable strategies for the year ahead.

Date: May 11, 2023
Website: IB Innovation Summit Australia
Venue: The Fullerton Hotel Sydney, 1 Martin Pl, Sydney, New South Wales 2000, Australia

IB Innovation Summit is Australia’s leading insurance innovation event, which gathers the country’s top insurers for a day of panel discussions, case studies, and presentations addressing the most pressing issues the insurance industry faces on its way to digital transformation. The insurance conference is presented in two concurrent streams. These are:

1. Claims innovation

In a competitive market, insurers are looking to transform their claims-handling process to improve customer satisfaction, reduce claim decision cycle times, and minimize costs. IB Innovation Summit’s claims innovation stream addresses issues and presents strategies on how to streamline claims processing to effectively communicate with customers and achieve operational efficiency.

2. Insurtech

In this stream, IB Innovation Summit discusses the role digital transformation plays in helping insurance companies deliver positive customer experience and drive operational efficiency to remain competitive in an increasingly digital environment.

Insurance Business will also hold a pair of events recognizing the outstanding achievements of different insurers and insurance professionals.

1. Insurance Business Australia Awards

Date: September 15, 2023
Website: Insurance Business Australia Awards
Venue: The Fullerton Hotel Sydney, 1 Martin Pl, Sydney, New South Wales 2000, Australia

The annual Insurance Business Awards will return for its sixth edition to showcase the achievements of Australia’s leading brokers, brokerages, insurers, underwriting agencies, BDMs and other industry professionals. Over the years, it has become the leading independent awards event for the nation’s insurance industry.

2. Insurance Business Canada Awards

Date: Not yet set
Website: Insurance Business Canada Awards
Venue: Liberty Grand Toronto, Exhibition Place, 25 British Columbia Road, Toronto, Ontario M6K 3C3, Canada

Now in its eighth year, the annual Insurance Business Canada Awards has been recognized as the country’s leading awards program in the insurance profession. The event honors the exemplary achievements of Canada’s best brokers, brokerages, insurers, underwriters, MGAs, and risk managers in the past year.

If you are a specialist looking for insurance conferences that cater to your line of work, you can also sign up for the following events.

Cyber insurance conferences

Cyber Symposium

Date: February 14-15, 2023
Location: New York, USA

The two-day insurance conference on cyber liability discusses cyber exposures and emerging issues that will impact the market in the coming year. Participants will earn Continuing Education credits.

Cyber Risk Insights Conference

Date: April 19, 2023
Location: London, UK

The one-day insurance conference topics will tackle critical privacy and security issues confronting risk professionals and their organizations. A panel of industry experts will offer insights on how to manage risk in a rapidly evolving threat landscape.

Cyber Risk and Insurance Innovation USA 2023

Date: May 16-17, 2023
Location: Chicago, USA

This annual event addresses cyber issues affecting insurance professionals and policyholders, including cybersecurity risk assessment, underwriting challenges, growth opportunities and market cooperation.

Life insurance conferences

LIMRA Distribution Conference

Date: March 1-3, 2023
Location: Orlando, USA

This insurance conference examines the vital role that key distribution channels play in the life insurance industry. It also shares strategies for industry players successfully manage distribution in the constantly evolving insurance landscape. 

LIMRA Life Insurance & Annuity Conference

Date: April 24-26, 2023
Location: Salt Lake City, USA

This event provides life insurance and annuity professionals with cross-functional learning and networking opportunities around the development, operations, marketing, distribution, regulation, technology, and administration of individual life insurance and annuity products.

Property and casualty (P&C) insurance events

Complex Claims & Litigation Forum

Date: February 27-March 2, 2023
Location: Las Vegas, USA

This new insurance event aims to help insurers prevent and prepare for complex claims adjudication and settlement negotiations, and win cases if a claim has to go to court.

DEI Expanding Opportunity in Insurance Conference

Date: April 2-4, 2023
Location: Washington, D.C., USA

This event by the American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA) gathers insurance thought leaders from across the US to discuss the current state of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the industry and share tactical ways on how insurers can move forward on the issue.

National Flood Conference

Date: June 4-7, 2023
Location: Washington, D.C., USA

Another APCIA event, this insurance conference brings together flood insurance professionals and stakeholders to learn the latest information on the National Flood Insurance Program and related topics from subject matter experts. Participants can earn Continuing Education credits.

Insurance technology (Insurtech) conferences

Insurtech Insights Conferences

Date: March 1-2, 2023
Location: London, UK;
Date: June 7-9, 2023
Location: New York, USA
TBA: Hong Kong, 2023

Happening in Europe, the US, and Asia, this series of insurance conferences brings together senior industry executives, who will guide insurers in their digital transformation journey and help them drive investments in emerging technologies and innovations.

Insurance Innovators USA

Date: April 17-18, 2023
Location: Nashville, USA

By attending this insurance conference, participants can hear expert opinions, spot important trends, and uncover the best opportunities for innovation in their organizations. This year’s topics include AI and analytics, climate change, the Great Resignation, Web3, and the Metaverse.

Global InsurTech Summit

Date: April 18, 2023
Location: London UK

The event will host hundreds of senior decision-makers alongside insurtech founders and tech innovators in Europe. Participants can network with senior industry leaders and keep abreast of the latest innovations in the insurance industry.

Health insurance conferences

AHIP 2023 Medicare, Medicaid, Duals & Commercial Markets Forum

Date: March 14-16, 2023
Location: Washington, D.C., USA

This insurance conference focuses on the most pressing policy priorities, regulatory updates, and emerging issues for Medicare, Medicaid, Duals, and the commercial market.

14th Annual Global Health Insurance Conference

Date: October 6-7, 2023
Location: Prague, Czech Republic

This edition of this annual health insurance conference will discuss how insurers and healthcare providers can develop a healthcare ecosystem in an era of new data-sharing regulations and how to incorporate digital technologies to enable long-term engagement with customers.

Are you looking forward to attending our Insurance Business events? Tell us what excites you the most about these insurance conferences in the comment box below.

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