On-Demand Web Seminars

Understanding Property Metrics

February 22, 2010

There are thousands of ways to look at a commercial building. In this seminar, you’ll find out about some of the most important metrics available to commercial property underwriters. You’ll also learn how to apply those metrics in an automated underwriting system or business rules engine.

Predictive Modeling for Homeowners

February 1, 2010

Predictive modeling continues to offer powerful competitive advantages to insurers — and not just in personal auto. In this session, you’ll learn about ISO Risk Analyzer Homeowners, a set of models that develop highly refined estimates of insurance losses at the address level. ISO has created separate models by peril, enhancing the flexibility and predictive power of the product.

Ten Things a Commercial Underwriter Needs to Know

January 18, 2010

When you’re underwriting or rating a commercial property, you may take dozens of factors into consideration. But in this seminar, you’ll learn about the ten essential pieces of information you need to underwrite and rate any building or occupancy.

LOCATION Analyst: Geoanalytics for Risk Management

December 14, 2009

Insurers are looking for ways to spatially explore and analyze vast amounts of policy and claims data so they can make intelligent risk-management decisions. Learn about ISO’s new GIS risk-management tool to help you analyze your books of business for underwriting, ratemaking, catastrophe assessment and response, customer service and retention, and hazard mitigation.

SCOPES: The Specific Commercial Property Evaluation Schedule

December 7, 2009

These days, insurers are increasing their focus on pricing information and predictive analytics that match the individual risk. The Specific Commercial Property Rating Schedule (SCOPES) is the current version of one of the oldest and best-established tools for accurate rating of individual risks. In this seminar, you’ll learn about efforts to keep SCOPES in line with recent changes in construction practices and building materials. You’ll also learn about what ISO is doing to improve the predictive power and consistency of our specific property loss costs.

It's Wildfire Season. Do You Know Where Your Risks Are?

November 2, 2009

Every year, it seems that wildfire season starts earlier and lasts longer. If you’re insuring properties in areas subject to wildfire, you need to be able to pinpoint your risks and evaluate their exposure to wildfire risk — both when you’re underwriting and during an actual fire. This seminar will explore methods that can help you identify your risk and manage your exposure.

Identifying Hazards – Restaurant and Cooking Risks

October 19, 2009

What dangers lurk in those greasy restaurant hoods and ducts? Are there vermin in the cellar? Will people slip and fall on that ragged carpet? Whether you’re underwriting a full-service restaurant or a convenience store with limited cooking facilities, you need to understand the hazards — and the ways to mitigate them. In this seminar, you’ll learn how to identify conditions that could lead to increased risk at a restaurant. And you’ll find out about practical ways you can help your customers reduce losses and keep their employees and the public safe.

Improving Data Collection and Processing for Loss Control and Underwriting

August 24, 2009

Property/casualty insurers invest significant resources in gathering on-site information for loss control and underwriting. Inspectors collect detailed data about building construction, occupancy hazards, dangerous conditions, fire-suppression capabilities, and more. In this seminar, you’ll learn how to mprove the way you collect and process that data. You’ll also see how to make the most of your investments in loss control information through analytics on completed inspections.

The Value of Community Fire Protection in Reducing Insurance Losses

July 27, 2009

It sounds so obvious that you might almost take it for granted: Your fire department plays an important role in reducing fire losses in your community. But can you prove it? In this seminar, you’ll learn about recent statistical studies that demonstrate the measurable effect of local fire-protection capabilities on claim severity. The studies confirm the importance of community efforts — as well as the value insurers get from considering the quality of local fire protection in the pricing of property insurance. You’ll also find out how fire officials use information from the insurance industry to maintain and improve protection for their communities.

Climate Change and Green Buildings: The Insurance Implications

July 20, 2009

Climate change is already affecting the property/casualty industry from an internal business perspective — and the long-term ramifications could be vast. This session will explore the topic, as well as one fairly recent response to the challenges — the move to make our buildings greener. The potential benefits are many. But with new construction techniques, renewable materials, and improved use of energy come certain property and liability issues you need to understand.

Improve Your Underwriting and Rating with Risk Improvement Statements

June 15, 2009

Every year, ISO’s highly trained field representatives conduct on-site surveys of hundreds of thousands of commercial properties. In the process, they observe and record occupancy hazards and dangerous conditions and recommend improvements that can reduce risk. In this seminar, you’ll learn about common building and occupancy hazards. You’ll also learn how to use ISO’s risk-improvement statements as a competitive tool.

Implications of Megacatastrophes for the Insurance Industry

June 1, 2009

Insurers and risk managers recognize the extensive exposures they face in the Northeast, Florida, and California. Modelers and other industry resources predict that insured losses from a Category 3 hurricane in a major population center in any of those areas could run from $100 to $300 billion and could produce more than 10 million claims. In this session, you’ll hear about measures you can take to allocate your resources effectively and provide suitable customer service after a megacatastrophe.

Turmoil in the Housing and Construction Marketplace: Xactware’s 2008 Property Report

May 26, 2009

The housing and construction industries experienced tremendous changes in 2008 — plunging home values, dramatic increases in the cost of many building materials, and wild fluctuations in the price of oil. In this seminar, you’ll learn about the findings of Xactware’s 2008 Property Report, including major trends in pricing and claims that will affect the property insurance business in the year to come.

How Current Issues Facing Fire Departments Affect Underwriting and Property Risk

May 18, 2009

The nation’s fire departments face many challenges in staffing, recruiting and training, mutual aid, and water supply. And in today’s economy, those challenges are becoming ever more acute. The issues also have serious implications for the insurance industry. In this session, we’ll review the state of public fire protection across the country. You’ll hear about the views expressed by local fire officials in a recent independent opinion poll. And you’ll learn how you can use ISO’s Public Protection Classification (PPCTM) as an effective underwriting tool. We’ll also discuss proposed changes to ISO’s Fire Suppression Rating Survey (FSRS), the manual we use in evaluating fire-protection services in communities countrywide.

Evaluating Product Liability Risk: A Loss Control Primer

April 20, 2009

To evaluate product liability risk, you need a clear understanding of the insured’s business operations, exposures, and controls. In this SPI Plus web seminar, you’ll learn about the perils covered under a product liability policy, theories of liability, and mitigation and control measures that could reduce the potential for losses. You’ll also learn the key questions you need answered to select and underwrite a product liability account.

Foreclosures and Property Insurance

March 30, 2009

You can’t open a newspaper these days without seeing coverage of the foreclosure crisis and how it is affecting homeowners, banks, and other financial institutions. But what about insurers? When a property you insure starts to face foreclosure, your overall risk of loss increases. In this session, you’ll learn about better ways evaluate the chance of foreclosures in your book of business — and about positive action you can take to reduce your risk.

Commercial Property Limit of Insurance

March 23, 2009

In this session, you’ll learn about why we have limit of insurance (LOI) curves and how the curves vary across the commercial property rating structure. You’ll also hear about changes ISO is introducing in conjunction with LOI — for example, new occupancy/construction relativities and specialty commercial lines streamlining.

Commercial Property Crime — Reducing Risk and Reducing Loss

March 16, 2009

When you’re underwriting a commercial property, information on the location’s potential risk for crime can help you develop appropriate insurance programs, set accurate premiums, and recommend measures to prevent crime and reduce loss. In this seminar, you’ll learn how to identify conditions at a property that could lead to increased crime risk. You’ll also learn about deterrents you can recommend to your customers.

Bringing it all together: Identifying hazards with COPE information

February 23, 2009

ISO’s SPI Plus® system gives you information about construction, occupancy, protection, and exposure (COPE) for more than 3 million commercial buildings across the United States. In this seminar, you’ll learn how to use COPE information to help identify and mitigate hazards.

Bridging the Gap between Underwriting, Claims, and Policyholders

February 2, 2009

When your company underwrites a property policy, you get an estimated replacement cost. But what if there’s a claim that doesn’t reflect the estimate? Insurers need to bridge the gap between underwriting and claims and involve policyholders more closely in the process. With today’s technology, you can link all applications to a single database and reduce the likelihood of unwelcome surprises. In this session, you’ll find out how.

Industry Outlook

January 26, 2009

Scott Stephenson, ISO’s executive vice president and chief operating officer, shares his perspective on where the insurance industry is heading for 2009 and beyond. Scott will identify challenges he expects the industry to face and illustrate how insurers can compete in the face of those challenges.

Identifying the construction class: Its importance in evaluating a risk

January 8, 2009

In this session, we discuss how knowing the elements used to construct a building is the first step in evaluating a risk. We take you inside buildings and show you how to identify construction materials and determine construction classification. Through the use of actual case studies, you’ll see how construction, occupancy, and protection designed for the risk can save or destroy a building.

Automatic Sprinklers: Your key to reducing property loss

December 4, 2008

Learn why and how sprinklers limit the spread of fire and prevent property damage. You’ll also learn about the advantages of automatic sprinkler protection, common misconceptions about sprinkler systems, basic components and operation of sprinkler systems, and specific underwriting concerns regarding those systems.

How building-code information can reduce loss from natural disasters

November 6, 2008

Building-code enforcement in communities can minimize damage from natural hazards, fire, and other perils, ultimately reducing insurance costs. Tune in to learn why. You’ll also learn about ISO’s Building Code Effectiveness Grading Schedule (BCEGS®) program, and how participation benefits communities and insurers.

Using business information in underwriting

October 2, 2008

Learn about a new, powerful search mechanism in SPI Plus. The Business Name search will make it easier for you to find occupants and the buildings you’re underwriting. We discuss how the new search will work and introduce Business Reports — information on a company’s operations, sales revenues, employee size, and management.

Wildfire and flood: Understand the perils before you underwrite

September 11, 2008

This seminar is a must if you’re looking to assess and manage your exposure to loss and develop appropriate risk-management strategies. We discuss how knowing your property’s risk from wildfire and flood can improve your underwriting decisions. We also highlight some of the tools you can use to mitigate your risks from those perils.

Property Details Report — Source-verified information from an exterior inspection

June 5 and 19, 2008

This seminar will highlight ISO’s Property Details Report, which provides information gathered from an exterior inspection of a building completed by a trained ISO field representative. Learn about the source-verified information in the reports, including photos, construction details, occupancy, protection class, building codes, and assessment of crime and other hazards.

The impact of municipal fire protection and insured property loss on your book of business

May 1, 2008

In this session, you’ll learn about the comprehensive information that goes into developing ISO’s public-protection ratings. You’ll also gain insights into how classifying a community’s ability to suppress fires can help you understand property risk.

Using accurate ITV estimates to price your risk and set adequate premiums

April 3, 2008

Learn how the data in SPI Plus reports can help you insure your policies adequately and improve your underwriting decisions. You’ll also gain an understanding of the component-based methodology used.

How natural hazard data and risk levels can help you manage your exposure to loss

March 6, 2008

In this session, you’ll learn how the data in SPI Plus reports can help you manage your exposure to loss from hurricanes, severe thunderstorms, and earthquakes. We discuss how incorporating catastrophe risk information in the underwriting process can lead to better risk selections and more profitable portfolios.