Using AI based data insights in commercial insurance in the COVID-19 new normal - an interview with Dick Welch, CEO of Hospitality Insurance Group

I had the honor of meeting Dick Welch virtually in a COVID-19 roundtable discussion hosted by Planck. I had heard a lot about Dick and the innovative team at Hospitality Insurance Group, but this was my first opportunity to hear him discuss COVID-19 and its influence on the commercial insurance business, and on our lives. I was amazed by his insights and thoughts about our past, present, and future.

The interview is an inspiring discussion about underwriting, data insights and the approaching new normal of our lives. It was published on the Planck website CEO Series.

Following are some of the highlights. I recommend reading the complete interview here.

As small businesses adapt to the COVID-19 new normal, the risks associated with these businesses will change. It appears that some types of business models are being re-created on the fly. And as the new normal is a dynamic moving target, there will probably continue to be changes in businesses for the following months (years?), requiring dynamic data and underwriting capabilities.

Dick described an intriguing concept on how we can create efficiency in the underwriting process by collecting accurate, conformed, actionable data that does not require underwriters to spend a large amount of time collecting. Transforming this concept into a process is a challenge, requiring advanced tools and data insights for underwriters and automation of many parts of the underwriting process. The accuracy and coverage of our current data sets need to be vastly increased, including their dynamic values. When a business changes, the data must change. We will need new data that currently does not exist or is not accessible, and new types of data will continuously become necessary.

The underwriter will need to focus on the actual assessment of the risk, and not on validating the data accuracy or performing a manual process. The data input and process will need to be automated and capable of keeping up with the dynamics of changing small businesses.

In Dick’s parting words he recommended that we stay on top of what is changing in the business sectors we serve as a result of COVID-19, both directly and indirectly, and develop plans to adapt to those changes. While this may be a more difficult time to listen and communicate, it is probably more important than ever to do so.

The complete interview can be found here.