Best catastrophe risk modelling software: Impact Forecasting ELEMENTS
Finalists: AIR Worldwide, RMS
The ELEMENTS platform from Impact Forecasting (Aon Benfield's catastrophe modelling arm) opens up the potential for catastrophe modellers to explore emerging markets and shape product opportunities when managing the process of new product development, underwriting and accumulation control, from start to finish.
A key aspect of the enhanced platform is the increased ease of running any third party's or insurers' own model from Ambiental, JBA and SSBN or UCL's tsunami model. Equally, Impact Forecasting models are also being used on other platforms – including Sequel Impact, ImageCat Inhance, Spatial Key and Opta. The firm also supports the Oasis loss modelling framework, directly within ELEMENTS 10 by using Oasis hazard and vulnerability formats, and by helping insurers use Impact Forecasting models within the Oasis loss calculation kernel.
Impact Forecasting has helped Unica offer flood insurance in Canada, where personal lines have historically been covered by the government. After the country suffered almost US$7bn of economic damage from floods in 2013, the modelling firm stepped in to help insurers better understand this risk and seize the opportunity of developing sustainable and affordable flood insurance products.
By taking data on frequency, severity and location from the model, Impact Forecasting helped Unica calculate its primary rates by identifying the flood risk around individual properties. Now the Canadian insurer is able to offer affordable cover for flood damage to households and businesses.
Unica's president and chief operating officer Martin Delage says: "Impact Forecasting's data has been critical to improve our understanding of the flood risk in Canada."