Core Insurance, Insurance Technology
PR Newswire | August 07, 2023
Today, NEXT Insurance, a leading digital small business insurer, announced it is expanding its insurance offerings for small businesses with the launch of commercial umbrella/excess liability in 41 states, and the expansion of liquor liability coverage in 7 additional states. Commercial umbrella/excess liability insurance includes the same coverage, conditions, and exclusions as its underlying general liability policy, and provides coverage when that policy's per-occurrence or aggregate limits are exhausted. This expansion will be launched on a direct and agents channel, furthering NEXT's commitment to customers while providing the best possible experience for agents.
NEXT's umbrella/excess liability coverage will sit over customers' general liability policies and provide higher limits for coverage offered in that policy, ensuring small businesses can get the protection they need from a potentially catastrophic loss due to a lawsuit. Customers will be able to add this optional coverage to a general liability policy post-purchase to easily modify their insurance needs as their business needs continue to grow. Often, umbrella/excess liability coverage is required due to a contractual obligation, like a new construction client requiring higher limits on general liability to take on a project, or moving operations to a new building and a landlord requires an umbrella/excess liability policy. With this expansion, instead of needing to call to make policy changes, customers can now self-serve, adding umbrella/excess liability coverage to their policy in the Customer Portal, providing them the tools to tailor their coverage to satisfy new insurance requirements instantly.
NEXT is also furthering its commitment to restaurant small business owners with the expansion of liquor liability coverage to 7 additional states including Illinois, Michigan, Massachusetts, Missouri, Minnesota, Utah, and Iowa. Liquor liability is a crucial protection for small businesses that manufacture, sell, or serve alcoholic beverages. Available as a part of NEXT's general liability coverage, NEXT's liquor liability covers losses resulting from the intoxication of customers and is designed for small businesses such as cafés, diners, pop-up restaurants, and fine dining.
On the launch of umbrella/excess liability coverage, Jack Ramsey, NEXT Insurance Vice President of Agent Business, shares:
"We're launching umbrella/excess liability coverage to help entrepreneurs thrive. As businesses grow, their liability insurance needs change, and as a carrier, we want to make sure we're able to continue to support our customers' growth. We're confident that this highly-requested umbrella/excess liability offering will address the demand we've seen from both customers and agents who require this coverage for contractual obligations, and we are excited to be able to offer this expansion ourselves with the aim of being a one-stop-shop for our small business customers."
This news follows NEXT's integration with Ivans Download™ for General Liability and Workers' Compensation policies, and the recent strategic hire of Jack Ramsey as the company's Vice President of Agent Business. NEXT is doubling down on its commitment to the needs of agents and customers alike by quickly iterating and reacting to feedback, providing an unparalleled digital experience to help them thrive and expand their business.
About NEXT Insurance
NEXT Insurance is transforming small business insurance with simple, digital and affordable coverage tailored to the self-employed. Trusted by over 480,000 business owners, NEXT offers policies that are easy to buy and provides 24/7 access to Live Certificates of Insurance, additional insured, and more, with no extra fees. Revolutionizing a historically complicated insurance industry, NEXT utilizes AI and machine learning to simplify the purchasing process and provide more affordable coverage. Founded in 2016, the company is headquartered in Palo Alto, has received a total of $881 million in venture capital funding, is rated "A- Excellent" by AM Best and has been recognized by CNBC Disruptor 50, Forbes Fintech 50, Inc.'s Best-Led Companies, and Forbes Best StartUp Employers. For more information, visit NEXTInsurance.com.
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Core Insurance, Insurance Technology
PRnewswire | July 19, 2023
With the 2023 natural disaster season upon us, property and casualty (P&C) insurers are now, more than ever, aware of the increased strain recent catastrophes, like Hurricane Ian, have had on their business. Nearmap, a leading location intelligence and aerial imagery solutions provider, aims to alleviate some of that pressure by revolutionizing how P&C insurers respond to catastrophes. Today, the firm is announcing an enhanced post-catastrophe response solution, which combines industry-leading Nearmap ImpactResponse post-catastrophe imagery with two new products--Nearmap ImpactTriage AI and Nearmap ImpactAssessment AI. This new solution equips insurers with a more robust set of AI-derived property insights all in one place, enabling them to address damage and get a head start on claims.
Don Weigel, Chief Product Officer, said: "As we see a growing number of natural disasters, our role at Nearmap has expanded from monitoring the evolution of towns and cities to also supporting disaster response efforts. We have a unique combination of ultra-efficient cameras, fast imagery processing, and industry-leading deployment of AI. These new solutions allow Nearmap to be there supporting organizations at all stages as they respond to catastrophe, process claims, and help communities to recover."
Together, the post-catastrophe products from Nearmap provide industry-leading aerial imagery and AI-derived damage assessment data to support all stages of the post-catastrophe claims workflow.
Nearmap ImpactResponse
Nearmap ImpactResponse, the flagship post catastrophe product, delivers high-resolution, post-catastrophe aerial imagery faster than any other solution on the market.
With Nearmap ImpactResponse, in-person inspections—often dangerous, time-consuming, or prohibited—are no longer the most viable option.
The level of detail provided by Nearmap ImpactResponse is unprecedented, consistently delivering the sharpest post-catastrophe imagery at sub-3" per pixel since its launch in 2021.
Derived from Nearmap ImpactResponse imagery, come the two new products:
Nearmap ImpactTriage AI
Nearmap ImpactTriage AI provides damage classification that allows insurers to quickly identify impacted properties after disaster strikes. Delivered via API following a catastrophe, ImpactTriage AI data gives carriers a jumpstart toward recovery efforts—allowing them to prepare for claims and assign adjusters.
Nearmap ImpactTriage AI provides insurers a categorization of the damaged locations, enabling insurers to systematically prioritize and allocate limited resources.
A three-tier damage classification (No Damage, Partial Loss, and Total Loss) supports prioritization of resources and services according to damage severity.
A five-tier FEMA-based damage classification (No Damage, Affected, Minor, Major, and Destroyed) additionally supports more accurate estimates of financial impacts at the claim and event levels.
The new product supports insurers in their ability to automate claims, proactively process total losses, and deliver policyholder settlements before a claim is filed.
Nearmap ImpactAssessment AI
Nearmap ImpactAssessment AI is a robust collection of AI-derived condition and damage data that allows insurers to quickly and more accurately analyze vast amounts of post-catastrophe imagery and to pinpoint relevant details that could easily be missed in onsite or manual reviews.
Insurers can compare these insights with pre-catastrophe data, when available, to reduce fraud.
The set of AI-derived attributes includes roof damage, temporary and permanent repairs, structural damage, debris, wreckage, and more.
With disaster season in motion, the ability to rapidly scope impact, engage proactively with customers, process claims swiftly, and manage post-catastrophe costs are not only business essentials—they are promises to policyholders.
"After a hurricane, it's like a warzone," said Noel Bunol, Executive Vice President, Gulf States Insurance. "We can't get in there by vehicle. Nearmap imagery allows us to see the damage from above. We can view entire neighborhoods to see how hard they were affected; if powerlines are down and start to determine where to send resources."
About Nearmap
Nearmap provides easy, instant access to high-resolution aerial imagery, city-scale 3D content, AI data sets, and geospatial tools. Using its own patented camera systems and processing software, Nearmap captures wide-scale urban areas in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand several times each year, making current content instantly available in the cloud via web app or API integration. Every day, Nearmap helps thousands of users conduct virtual site visits for deep, data-driven insights—enabling informed decisions, streamlined operations, and better financial performance. Founded in Australia in 2007, Nearmap is one of the largest aerial survey companies in the world.
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Core Insurance, Insurance Technology
Business Wire | August 01, 2023
Franklin Mutual Insurance Group (FMI), a P&C insurance provider for residents and business owners in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and Guidewire (NYSE: GWRE) announced that FMI successfully implemented Guidewire InsuranceSuite on Guidewire Cloud to power its core business, simplify its IT operations, adapt more quickly to changing market demands, and deliver more value to its agents and policyholders. The company migrated InsuranceSuite from a self-managed environment to Guidewire Cloud simultaneously for all lines of business except Business Owner Policy (BOP), which is currently in implementation. Guidewire PartnerConnect Consulting Global Premier member PwC led the implementation project.
“Leveraging Guidewire in the cloud is a more economical way of using the technology,” said FMI Chief Technology Officer Steve Romanow. “While our business strategies and objectives haven’t changed, Guidewire Cloud is enabling us to execute them more quickly. We’re utilizing InsuranceSuite's full capabilities compared to a self-managed environment and staying current with Guidewire’s latest technology and innovation through regular Guidewire Cloud updates.”
Romanow added, “Thanks to Guidewire, PwC and CastleBay Consulting, we were able to conclude the implementation project on time and on budget. The overall efficiencies provided by Guidewire Cloud have allowed our staff to focus on delivering value to our agents and policyholders to grow our business.”
“We're proud to have helped Franklin Mutual Insurance facilitate this implementation to Guidewire Cloud,” said PwC Managing Director Jay Davidson. “The successful deployment wouldn't have been possible without the collaborative efforts of an exceptional team. This implementation reaffirms FMI’s commitment to both their customers and their business by providing enterprise agility and scalability for the future.”
“We congratulate Franklin Mutual Insurance on its successful cloud transformation through its InsuranceSuite migration to Guidewire Cloud,” said Guidewire Head of Services Michael Mahoney. “We’re excited to work with the company to help them continue their commitment to policyholders through dedication to a strong ethical culture, excellent customer service, consistency in the marketplace, and financial strength.”
FMI also migrated its self-managed installations of DataHub and InfoCenter onto Guidewire Cloud. The company is also leveraging SmartCOMM™ from Smart Communications for customer communications management. Guidewire is a reseller of Smart Communications, a Guidewire PartnerConnect Solution member.
About Franklin Mutual Insurance
Franklin Mutual Insurance is one of the most established and respected insurance companies in New Jersey. In business since 1879, FMI offers superior coverages to New Jersey residents and business owners, sold exclusively through professional independent agents. Rated A (Excellent) by A.M. Best, we have the financial strength and stability to protect our insureds and continue to grow our business. For more information, please visit https://www.fmiweb.com/site/.
About PwC
At PwC, our purpose is to build trust in society and solve important problems. We’re a network of firms in 152 countries with over 327,000 people who are committed to delivering quality in assurance, advisory and tax services. Find out more and tell us what matters to you by visiting us at www.pwc.com.
About Guidewire Software
Guidewire is the platform P&C insurers trust to engage, innovate, and grow efficiently. We combine digital, core, analytics, and AI to deliver our platform as a cloud service. More than 500 insurers in 38 countries, from new ventures to the largest and most complex in the world, run on Guidewire.
As a partner to our customers, we continually evolve to enable their success. We are proud of our unparalleled implementation track record, with 1,000+ successful projects, supported by the largest R&D team and partner ecosystem in the industry. Our marketplace provides hundreds of applications that accelerate integration, localization, and innovation.
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