By Anoop Khanna
Members of the London chapter of Professional Liability Underwriting Society (PLUS) are generally upbeat about the post coronavirus prospects of the London insurance market.
About 100 members of PLUS (from London and North America) met online on 18 June 2020, and debated the question “To what extent will this crisis lead to a permanent move away from the face to face market?”
The views of the audience were positive. The members felt that the market was coping surprisingly well with virtual broking and underwriting. Of the 94 members polled, 60% expect London market to come back stronger after COVID-19 and 88% expect the London market to change for the better as a result of the pandemic.
52% said that placing business will ultimately be cheaper for international clients and 28% believe that within a year placing business will be quicker for international clients.
The online meeting of PLUS also hosted a panel discussion on the topic and the panel included senior executives from Marsh, Beazley, Clyde & Co, Tysers and Travelers Europe. The discussion highlighted some of the demands that virtual working places pose on those tasked with building new relationships.
Other challenges included the difficulty for brokers to get access to underwriters, and the increased strain of difficult risk-placement conversations when these cannot be held face-to-face.
New Dawn Risk CEO Max Carter, who chaired the discussion, said, “Overall, we were delighted with the positivity which came from members attending the debate, and it is great to know that members have faith that the technology and relationships which underpin this market will allow us to continue to place and manage risks for our clients effectively.”
While all panel members felt that teams were beginning to miss the energy brought by human interaction, most agreed that remote working would be likely to stay in the future.
Asia Insurance Review
