The insurance industry has been told it needs to unite to use its data and analytics to better enable risk managers to obtain a more detailed understanding of challenges they face.

Speaking to Emerging Risks Fred Kleiterp, CEO EMEA at Swiss Re Corporate Solutions said the current major dynamics which are impacting the risk market dominated discussions with risk managers at FERMA’s recent conference in Copenhagen.

He said risk managers were “realistic” about the threats they face, adding that while there was pressure on rates and capacity, there was still more that underwriters could do to support clients.

“Since we last met in Berlin for FERMA in 2019, we have seen a market hardening, the COVID pandemic, and currently we have an exceptional and very challenging environment.

“We are still seeing the aftereffects of COVID, with pressure on supply chains and a shortage of labour. This year has also highlighted the impact of climate change with floods, and droughts across Europe, and storms in the United States.

“We are also facing the impact of the war in Ukraine, the energy crisis and rising inflation. Risk managers are now looking to see how they can make sense of it all.”

He added that risk managers were seeking to take back control of their risks.

“This requires a greater understanding of what their risk landscape looks like in detail,” explained Kleiterp.

It creates the opportunity for insurers and reinsurers to use their technology and data to support brokers and risk managers at a crucial time.

“We as an industry have the ability to help them to quantify and better understand their risks. Once they have done so they are in a far better position to look at how they wish to mitigate or transfer those risks.”

Kleiterp added the industry needed to come together to use the analytics and data capabilities for the collective good of the clients.

“For example we already opened our own international programs platform, PULSE, to third parties. We also recently launched risk data services specifically for this purpose, ” he explained.  “Risk managers have had a difficult couple of years, with hardening rates and pressure on business. It has been a struggle for many. They are realistic about the current environment, but they expect the industry to support them and they are right to expect that.”

Looking to the future Kleiterp said insurers will need to take a disciplined approach.

“Risk will need to be well understood and well priced,” he explained. “It will be about modelling real risk, and taking into account the ongoing changes, in order to accurately interpret them and adequately price them.

“We need to understand the adequate price of risk, but in the current environment that is constantly evolving.”