Satellite Photo Technology Impacts Claims and Underwriting
Tom Guhl of Pictometry showed me some fascinating and useful photographic technology at the First Party Claims conference. His firm has a large photo image library which can show virtually any structure in the United States. We used to charter helicopters or planes to make aerial reproductions. This is a lot easier and much less expensive.
From an underwriting standpoint, this technology could be a game changer. Seeing a community from the air with the ability to zero onto any one structure will help underwriters rate and decide upon risks. Insurance companies Would be foolish not to use this technology at the point of sale and for marketing purposes.
Here is my interview with Tom Guhl and a short demonstration of how Pictometry works:
Chip:
I'm sure they will use it in underwriting if they want to justify a higher premium in a hard market. But policyholders might want to make use of it by submitting photos as part of their application packages even if the carriers do not.
I have just settled a case where the carrier attempted to limit my client's recovery by reference to part of a document that it unilaterally determined was a "statement of values," segregating values into four separate "buildings" because there are four addresses, even though the carrier itself produced aerial photographs showing that there were not 4 buildings.
Chip,
I have subscribed to Pictometry for years and used it on all my Hurricane Ike claims as well as all my Katrina assignments since 2008. It is an important tool especially useful in the evaluation of "wind vs flood" slab claims.
Neil
Great post :) Thank you for posting this informative content .. I am looking forward to see more interesting and informative like this :)