This session will provide an overall economic outlook of the property/casualty insurance industry. This session will include a high-level look at industry trends and disrupters. The always-popular Robert Hartwig, Ph.D., will provide important insights that will help you manage your company’s risk.

Robert Hartwig, Ph.D.

Director, Center for Risk & Uncertainty Management
University of South Carolina

Catastrophic events place considerable strain on the day-to-day operations of insurance professionals. This session will examine the issues relative to catastrophic events and provide tips and techniques to assist adjusters in preparing for adverse events.

Elise Farnham

President
Illumine Consulting

This session examines the coverage issues involving the COVID-19 pandemic and property/casualty insurance, specifically business income coverage, to build a substantive case for why most policies do NOT cover viral pandemics.

Bill Wilson, CPCU, ARM

Founder and Chief Executive Officer
InsuranceCommentary.com

This presentation will evaluate the pros and cons of litigating insurance claims in federal court. The presenters will analyze three critical opportunities for defense counsel who want to remove a case from state court to federal court based on diversity jurisdiction. They will emphasize when and how defendants may remove a case to federal court under 28 U.S.C. sections 1332, 1441, and 1446. The presentation will rely on federal decisions involving first-party property coverage, third-party liability coverage, and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage to illustrate the correct procedure for removal.

Hudson Jones

Partner
Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP

Gray Kelly

Senior Associate
Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP

Geospatial analysis has evolved rapidly the last few years, from identifying and returning building and property attributes to predicting the likelihood of a claim on a property. Today, geospatial analytics and remote property intelligence solutions are being successfully deployed throughout the policy lifecycle to improve risk selection, proactively address property issues with insureds and agents, accelerate claims decision-making, and detect potential fraud. With so many options, insurance carriers looking to implement this technology are now left to wonder where the best place to start is and how to get the best return on investment.

Dave Tobias

Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer
Betterview

This session will focus on adjusters’ work activities. The presenter will discuss how to prioritize work so the most important activities are conducted in a timely manner. This requires using judgment with consideration for supporting the theory of defense as developed by the claims professional.

Elise Farnham

President
Illumine Consulting

What does 2021 have in store for policyholders? What new trends are driving claims? What does the new normal look like in the United States? There are many challenges policyholders and carriers are grappling with, which will be covered in this session.

Joe Salpietro

Vice President of Claims
Cyberscout

Digital dependence amid the COVID-19 pandemic coupled with the continued buildout of 5G cellular networks may have ushered in our technologically driven future in the blink of an eye. Yet, for all the promises and enhancements 5G offers, insurers need to prepare to navigate the numerous accompanying concerns and risks. This session will examine the current status of 5G deployment, the risks 5G may pose, and the opportunities it may present now and after the COVID-19 pandemic. By understanding how the risk environment will be impacted, attendees can better arm their short-term and long-term strategies.

David Geller, CPCU, SCLA

Product Development Specialist
ISO

Adjusters are called upon to handle all types of claim situations. Many of them involve significant injury or death. This session will discuss how these severe claims can impact adjusters personally and how they can handle these horrors.

Elise Farnham

President
Illumine Consulting

Straight-through processing for auto physical damage claims is many auto insurers’ ultimate goal, and some are aiming to reach the mark this decade. But there are several workflow challenges and obstacles carriers need to overcome to make it a reality. While many organizations have added some form of automation to their processes, inefficiencies from first notice of loss through subrogation remain, driving costs and hindering policyholder satisfaction. To imagine the future of APD strategy –one that thrives on operational efficiency, automation, and customer experience – insurance professionals will need to know the critical steps for technology, data, and capability evolution. During this session, attendees will gain an understanding of innovations that are working in APD, the digital maturation process, and the potential timeline for organizations to reach straight-through processing.

Rick Treviño

Assistant Vice President of Product Innovation – Auto Physical Damage
Verisk

The plaintiffs’ bar has been successful in obtaining excessive verdicts, referred to as nuclear verdicts. This session will explore the techniques used by plaintiffs’ attorneys to convince juries to render these high verdicts and the impact they have on defense strategies.

Elise Farnham

President
Illumine Consulting

No doubt about it, claims payers are in Medicare’s bull’s-eye. Double damages, Section 111’s “$1,000 per day” penalty, U.S. Department of Justice actions, Treasury offsets, attorney liability, and refusal to recognize settlements are just a sampling of Medicare’s substantial enforcement rights under the Medicare Secondary Payer statute. Understanding Medicare’s wide-reaching remedies are critical in building solid MSP compliance practices. During this session, the presenter will break down the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ strong enforcement rights, including when and how they can apply, recent enforcement examples, and what insurance professionals need to consider when building targeted MSP best practices to reduce risk and liability.

Mark Popolizio, J.D.

Vice President of MSP Compliance and Policy
ISO Claims Partners

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted our lives to an unprecedented degree. To what extent did the pandemic alter the growing social inflation threat that had been building? Does the industry still face the specter of nuclear verdicts and inflated settlements? Or has COVID-19 introduced a level of rationality and personal responsibility among jurors? Do the root causes of social inflation remain; and if so, to what degree? This session will explore these factors and provide suggestions as to how the industry might navigate its way going forward.

Tim Fletcher

Senior Emerging Issues Specialist
Gen Re

This session will review issues surrounding claims professionals’ errors and omissions that can lead to bad-faith allegations. This includes analysis of when and how to issue reservation of rights letters, actions that could lead to waiver and estoppel, and how to avoid opening the door for bad-faith accusations.

Elise Farnham

President
Illumine Consulting

A panel of cyber claims experts will discuss trends in cyber claims and provide war stories about some of the more unique or unusual claims they have seen. They will also discuss the best ways to mitigate cyber claims and talk about where to find appropriate cyber insurance coverage. To make the session fun and interactive, the audience will get the chance to submit their own real or hypothetical cyber claims stories to see how the panel would handle them from incident-response and insurance-coverage standpoints.

Desiree Khoury

Vice President, Marketing and Business Development
Tokio Marine HCC - Cyber and Professional Lines Group

Insurers face significant challenges related to writing and managing cyber risk. The relentless pace of new cyber threats combined with a lack of access to industry-wide cyber exposure information has made day-to-day effectiveness and long-term profitability seem daunting. Insurers are left with fundamental challenges about how to execute and sustain a successful cyber program. This session will help insurers understand the challenges they face and equip them with best practices to more effectively and efficiently operationalize and deliver customer-focused cyber solutions. Attendees will be able to relate the information learned to their own practices to determine if they are caught up. They will also learn how to consider infusing best practices to improve their program management and underwriting strategies.

Alan Frith

Assistant Vice President
Verisk Cyber Solutions

Policyholders and facing a multitude of threats – faulty wire transfers, social engineering, and phishing and ransomware attacks What are the real-life scenarios for businesses when their policies are not in line with the cyber trends? Join this session to find out.

Joe Salpietro

Vice President of Claims
Cyberscout

The auto insurance claims process is seeing unprecedented disruption, and the way insurers are handling these types of claims is changing rapidly. Customer demand for a simpler, more efficient claims process is increasing. Consumers are coming to expect a higher level of customized service and are willing to share what was once deemed to be private information to get it. So the need to develop remote/virtual solutions is critical. Through extensive research of emerging technology and a focus on auto physical damage handling, this session takes a deep look into what the auto claims process of the future may look like. The presenters will walk attendees through two use cases that encompass a journey that is not yet being executed in the industry, but may be coming soon. The use-case journeys will highlight how critical points in the claims process of the future may look from the insurer and the customer perspectives.

Anaswara Appachan

Senior Manager
Ernst & Young LLP

Ram Balamurugan

Senior Consultant
Ernst & Young LLP

Michael Curcio

Manager
Ernst & Young LLP

Recent years have set a new standard in flood frequency and severity in the United States. These unpredictable events highlight the need for your clients and policyholders to have effective flood coverage that mitigates risk and builds stronger resiliency to severe weather.

Serena Garrahan

Vice President, Inland Flood Product Manager
Munich Re

Raghuveer Vinukollu

Natural Catastrophe Solutions Lead
Munich Re

Businesses are facing new, challenging changes in the ways they operate. Building operators are managing facilities that are often empty, partially occupied, or running on skeleton crews. In uncertain times, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond, many are turning to technology to help keep their businesses operational. Through continuous monitoring and actionable information, the internet of things can be another tool in the arsenal to mitigate business risks and disruptions, help reduce claims and, give you a competitive edge.

Robin Luo, CPCU, ARe

Senior Vice President, Business Development & Delivery | SME Solutions
HSB Applied Technology Solutions

Understanding the availability of metadata/digital information and how it might be used during claims investigations/analysis and ultimate claims decisions are critical pieces of knowledge for today's claims professionals. Collecting that information and properly securing and documenting it are essential to ensure the metadata/digital information can be used at trial.

Tim Tapply

Attorney
Brand & Tapply, LLC

Is your organization prepared for the upcoming wildfire season? During this session, attendees will learn about the changes in the wildfire risk landscape and the lessons that have been learned since the devastating 2017 and 2018 wildfire seasons.

Mark Bove

Meteorologist and Natural Catastrophe Solutions Manager
Munich Re