A.M. BestTV: One Year after Sandy, Storm Surge Concerns Remain

OLDWICK, N.J – In this A.M. BestTV episode focusing on the one-year anniversary of Superstorm Sandy, insurance executives say storm surge risk remains a challenging area to underwrite.

David Passman, Willis’ national property claims practice director, said the storm was an eye-opener for the industry, and that Northeast windstorm models were no longer hypothetical.

Duncan Ellis, U.S. property practice leader at Marsh, discusses how insurers need to take these types of flooding and windstorm losses into consideration when writing policies.

From a storm surge point of view, Peter Raab, head of property underwriting at Munich Re America called it the worst-case event, saying that “we don’t understand enough as an industry at this point and time” to underwrite the risk appropriately.

J. Eric Smith, president and CEO of Swiss Re Americas, explores how populations have moved to the coastlines, and the impact that has had on the industry when storms occur.

Aaron Davis of Aon talks about a renewed focus on exposure mitigation in response to the underground electrical systems in New York and homes that were damaged by salt water.

People who appear in this episode include:

• • • J. Eric Smith, President and CEO, Swiss Re Americas;
    • David Passman, Senior Vice President, National Director, Property Claims Practice, Willis;
    • Bernard Flynn, President and CEO, New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance Co.;
    • Peter Raab, Head of Property Underwriting, Regional Clients Business Unit, Munich Reinsurance America, Inc.;
    • Duncan Ellis, U.S. Property Practice Leader , Marsh; and
    • Aaron Davis, Managing Director, Aon Risk Solutions.

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