A.m. Best Radio Podcast

Scott Smith, vice president, director of safety management, Selective Insurance, discusses a survey that found 91% of motorists who drove with their dogs over the past year admitted to interacting with them while driving.

Investment experts examine the asset management trends, opportunities and risks facing today's insurance organizations.

Alternative investments offer opportunities for yield, but they also require timing and focus.

Few are bidding the low-rate environment a fond farewell, but the next chapter in investing is still taking shape.

Investment and insurance professionals review investment categories and how insurers' strategies are changing.

Aviad Pinkovezky, president of First Connect, a Hippo subsidiary, says artificial intelligence tools, melded with comprehensive data, will allow specialized insurance organizations to more quickly negotiate any learning curve.

Eric Gesick, senior vice president for casualty analytics, Verisk, said companies should examine their business relationships to determine how they might be linked to emerging risks.

A panel of insurance and atmospheric science experts at the Verisk Insurance Conference said overall tropical storms may decrease, but the Atlantic basin has seen an increase in slower moving storms that produce more rainfall.

A panel of auto insurance experts at the Verisk Insurance Conference said auto insurers are recovering from a "double whammy" of mis-rated policies and inflation.

Charles Jackson and Antoine Blanchard, both with Verisk Extreme Event Solutions, said individual underwriting models can be combined via artificial intelligence to uncover previously unforeseen exposures.

Bill Devine, Travelers, and Neil Spector, Verisk, said insurers have made huge investments in software and cloud computing, and now must discover new ways to cooperate as an industry.

A panel at the Verisk Insurance Conference said the definition of unfair discrimination has evolved over time, and uses of big data and predictive analytics require careful examination to ensure they do not result in unfair discrimination.

A panel of fire and insurance experts at the Verisk Insurance Conference said some insurers might exclude wildfire risk, but the public and legislators are becoming more aware and are concerned about the risk.

Speaking at the Verisk Insurance Conference, a panel on severe thunderstorm and hail risk said insurers can use data to promote awareness and help communities improve structures and embrace resilient structure standards.

Trish Hopkinson, Verisk Underwriting Solutions and Alex Wright, client and consulting services, Verisk, said claims costs come in higher than expected because of demand surge during peak events and failing to monitor changing replacement costs.

Lynn Pina, chief marketing officer at GeoBlue, discusses the need for travel medical insurance as more Americans are heading abroad since the pandemic has mostly subsided. About 6% of US travelers purchase the coverage. 

Bill Johnson, chairman and CEO of Liberty Company Insurance Brokers, and Kirk Aguilera, a managing partner, discuss the state of the workers' compensation insurance market and corporate culture among the businesses that serve that market.

Sarina Puccio, Head of Credit and Surety, Munich Re US, said the labor shortage is one of the hottest topics for insurers.

Laura Crossin, senior vice president of human resources at Philadelphia Insurance Cos., said the industry needs to make a commitment to develop young talent.

Keith Riccio, executive vice president, commercial D&O liability for Nationwide Management Liability and Specialty, said that environmental, social and governance reporting requirements are not particularly cumbersome for companies.