What’s New: In Brief (April 17, 2008)

Last year proved to be a buyer’s market for the insurance industry; barring any catastrophes in 2008, the price of premiums will likely continue to trend downwards, according to the Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) 2008 Benchmark Survey.The survey noted another year relatively free of major natural catastrophes, combined with abundant insurance market capacity, contributed to falling insurance costs. In turn, this led to a lower average total cost of risk (TCOR) per US$1,000 of revenue, according to a RIMS release. Changes in the average TCOR between 2006 and 2007 were not evenly distributed across industries: some watched TCOR rise, while a few experienced savings of 30% or more, the release continues.But while changes in TCOR varied by industry, lower average TCOR was distributed consistently across all sizes of companies.

Zurich has launched a new online service to assist North American customers with the cleanup of spills of hazardous materials, fuel or other regulated materials. The product was designed in collaboration with Spill Center, an environmental spill management firm. It is offered free-of-charge to Zurich Environmental customers.The online spill reporting system will assist in dispatching cleanup contractors, reducing costs associated with environmental releases, expediting regulatory reporting and mitigating potential liability, the release says.Users of the system receive electronic copies of paperwork generated by the spill incident, including an open release report, contractor retention documentation, regulatory paperwork, invoices and a closing report.