BrokerFest 2022, Helping brokers do better business

AGENDA

09:00 - 10:00 Registration & Networking

10:00 - 10:05 Welcome to BrokerFest 2022 featuring 'Insurance2025'

A short welcome speech by the Chair

Katie Scott, Editor, Insurance Times

10:05 - 10:30The Unfinished Business of Digitalisation in the Insurance Industry

Despite all of the talk about digitalisation in recent years coupled with the effort driven by Covid, insurers are still lagging behind other industries. The problem lies at the core of enterprise architecture of some insurers. While there have been advancements in some areas of insurance, others are falling behind.

Tara Foley, CEO, AXA Retail

10:30 - 11:00Insurance Industry’s Role in Delivering Net Zero and Building Sustainable Business Models

Following last year’s COP26 in Glasgow, the insurance industry is under more pressure to deliver net zero by 2050 as part of the government’s plans. Financial services industries are often criticised by climate protest groups for sponsoring industries that are more polluting than others. The insurance industry has a critical role to play in delivering net zero. In 2021, eight of the world’s leading insurers made a commitment to transition their portfolios to a net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050. To deliver net zero and combat climate change, insurers will have to embed the net-zero ambition in the core of their business models and set ambitious targets. What are the current initiatives and approaches by the industry and can they deliver sustainable business models?

Catherine Dixon, Chief Underwriting Officer, Allianz
Huw Evans, Partner, KPMG
Ben Howarth, Manager, Climate Change and Open Data Policy, ABI
Jason Richards, Country President and CEO UK&I, Swiss Re

11:00 - 11:30 The Consolidation in the Broking Industry: Are there any more players to be bought?

Despite the pandemic crisis, the consolidation in the broking market has continued with no signs of stopping. The M&A activity has been largely driven by the amount of private equity capital in the broking market. A lot of small brokers have disappeared and with them their books of business and client relationships. Merging different internal cultures and way of working could be daunting to staff but could also present opportunities. With the prospect of a few big brokers dominating the broking market, is there any room left for more consolidation in the market in the next few years? Will there be any more small players that can be bought out and what will that mean for the whole industry outlook?

Phil Bayles, Chief Commercial Officer, Ardonagh Advisory
Mike Edgeley, Group CEO, Clear Group
Janthana Kaenprakhamroy, CEO, Tapoly

11:30 - 12:00Refreshment & Networking Break

12:00 - 13:00 On Demand Sessions

SUITE 1

12:00 - 12:25 | PREMIUM FINANCE
The value of Premium Finance to all customers

In this session, the leading provider of insurance premium finance will take you through the importance of offering finance to 100% of your customers, the benefit of finance for you and your customers and the support we provide.

Christopher Emmanuel, Head of National Accounts - Brokers & Networks, Premium Credit

12:30 - 12:55 | CYBER
A General Market Update: What are the latest trends in the cyber space?

There has been a surge of cyber-attacks driven by the Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns. As companies strengthen their IT systems, cyber criminals are getting more sophisticated and new threats are emerging. While cyber threats are a major threat to corporates, they can pose an existential threat to SMEs.

Richard Hodson, Director, UK Global Broking
Freddy Knight, Innovation Director, Optimum Specialty Risks
Ken Munro, Partner, Pen Test Partners

SUITE 2

12:00 - 12:25 | REGULATION
The Increasing Cost of Regulation: What does it mean for brokers’ business models?

Earlier this year, the FCA introduced its new pricing rules which will impact both insurers and brokers. The aim of the new rules is to combat price walking and ensure fair value for customers. As a result, competition in the market will focus more on product value rather than price. This could be an opportunity for brokers to deliver a more sophisticated service and advice to customers. However, the regulatory costs on the other hand keep rising and small businesses might struggle to comply with the new rules. What could be the possible implications of the increasing regulatory cost? Could businesses be penalised or even stopped from trading?

Branko Bjelobaba, Principal, Branko Ltd
Michael Sicsic, Managing Partner, Sicsic Advisory
Graeme Trudgill, Executive Director, BIBA

12:30 - 12:55 | REGULATION
The FCA’s New Pricing Regulation: How can insurers bring fair value to customers?

Following 1st January 2022, insurers and brokers have to comply with the FCA’s new regulation on pricing. Targeted with the new legislation are motor and home insurance. Will this new legislation improve customer pricing and experience and ultimately bring fair value to customers?

Branko Bjelobaba, Principal, Branko Ltd
Andy Cooper, Director of Pricing, Esure
Karen Houseago, Head of Insurance (Commercial Product Development), Consumer Intelligence

SUITE 3

12:00 - 12:25 | MOTOR
What does the long-term future of the motor market look like? What are the future ownership and mobility models and what does that mean for the broking industry?

Car ownership is expected to decline globally with the rise of the shared economy. The millennial generation in comparison with baby boomers has different attitudes towards car ownership with alternative more sustainable modes of transportation preferred. EVs are also expected to become mainstream with projections that 52% of new vehicle sales to be electric by 2030 globally. Is the insurance broking industry ready for this seismic change?

Leon Bosch, Client Partner-Head of Automotive, Partners&
Bradley Brandon-Cross, Director and Principal, Bettersafe
Maddy Howlett, Chief Commercial Officer, By Miles

12:30 - 12:55 | Insurance2025 - OMNICHANNEL
How can insurers better communicate with their customers? Is omnichannel the answer?

Omnichannel communication can mitigate a lot of the challenges insurers face when they have to communicate with customers. It allows a more direct and targeted approach. Other companies in the tech industry have already employed this method successfully including the likes of Netflix and Amazon.

Mark Bower-Dyke, Director, Blieve Consulting
Charlotte Halkett, Chief Underwriting Officer, ManyPets
Tobias Taupitz, Co-founder, Laka

SUITE 4

12:00 - 12:25 | Insurance2025 - COMMERCIAL LINES
The state of digitalisation of commercial lines insurance: Are we ahead in the game?

There have been a number of digitalisation initiatives in personal lines insurance and the process has further been accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic. However, commercial lines of insurance have lagged behind. There are still a lot of paper-based processes and other inefficiencies that could be overcome. One of the obstacles of digitalisation in commercial lines has been the more complex underwriting and claims process compared to personal lines. Commercial lines have also been generally slow in adopting changes. But despite these obstacles and complexities, the urgency to digitalise is now growing more than ever.

David Allsopp, Director Insurance and Wealth Management, OneSpan
James Gilmour, Head of New Markets MGA, Simply Business
Phil Williams, Chief Operating Officer, Clear Group

12:30 - 12:55 | Insurance2025 - UNDERWRITING
Harnessing Technology to Transform Underwriting

Underwriting is a huge area which is ripe for disruption. Automation and data analytics can lower operating costs and drive efficiency. Some insurers use specific technologies like AI or IoT. Others prefer an end-to-end transformation of the underwriting process by replacing legacy systems. What approach works best and what results can it deliver?

Paul Willoughby, Consultant, Business Agility, an Endava company

13:00 - 14:00 Lunch & networking

SUITE 1

14:00 - 14:25 | MGAs
MGAs and Insurers: The Ongoing Capacity Challenge

MGAs sourcing capacity from insurers is an ongoing topic of debate, especially following the Covid-19 pandemic and insurers’ changed risk appetites. Have insurers been withdrawing ‘the pen’, so to speak, and if so, which market niches or lines of businesses been most affected? Insurers that withdraw capacity could additionally pose problems for MGAs in terms of solvency – is this a driver behind MGA consolidation? Is there enough decent capacity for MGAs in the UKGI market?

Charles Manchester, CEO, Manchester Underwriting

14:30 - 14:55 | CLAIMS
Claims Inflation: Can SMEs weather the storm?

The general inflation in the economy is affecting each firm and industry. Inflation is also one of the biggest issues from a claims and pricing perspective. Insurers are trying to offset the inflation by employing different strategies like having more levers on costs. While bigger market players have a capital buffer and a strategy in place, claims inflation might be the perfect storm for SMEs who are already struggling.

William Edwards, Head of SME, Zurich Insurance
Stuart Middleton, Chief Insurance Officer, Hubb
Simon Parrish, Head of SME Underwriting, Allianz Commercial

15:00 - 15:25 | Insurance2025 - EMBEDDED INSURANCE
Embedded Insurance: Can that be the ultimate future of the industry?

Embedded insurance is expected to grow significantly in the next few years with projections of a sixfold growth by the end of the decade. Embedded insurance offers huge benefits to insurers by cutting distribution costs and accessing new markets. However, some insurers still haven’t fully explored the benefits of embedded insurance. Archaic legacy systems are one of the obstacles preventing insurers to more widely adopt embedded insurance.

Yuri Poletto, Founder of Open and Embedded Insurance Observatory

SUITE 2

14:00 - 14:25 | Insurance2025 - CONSUMER
How to benefit from the changing consumer landscape in 2025 and beyond

So much has changed for consumers in the last 3 years of Covid. The centre of economic life has shifted from the office to the home; less time is spent commuting or driving their cars. The risks at home have also changed. As people tend to spend more time there, pet ownership has skyrocketed driving demand for pet insurance and travel insurance still faces the uncertainty of covid restrictions. This comes at a time when income is being stretched through inflation and a changing economic environment. People are having to choose between heat and food. Where does insurance sit in this? On top of all these changes, an always on mobile, digital world has raised consumer expectations of customer experience. What will all this mean for insurance in 2025 and beyond, and how can you adapt?

Ian Hughes, CEO, Consumer Intelligence

14:30 - 14:55 | Insurance2025 - DIGITAL
Bionic Insurance: Combining In-Person and Digital Interactions

Traditionally, brokers and agents relied on face-to-face meetings with customers to complete business applications, disclosures and policies. But in our increasingly remote world, consumers expect the ability to conduct business remotely. Despite a surge in all-things “digital”, customers still value the human connection. That’s why a human-digital hybrid model is an important combination for replicating the in-person experience.
• What will the future look like for the successful broker & agent ?
• What tools can we leverage to ensure the customer is more included?
• How would one incorporate a human - digital model to leverage max results?

David Allsopp, Director Insurance and Wealth Management, OneSpan
Phillip Wood, Senior Solutions Expert, OneSpan

15:00 - 15:25 | Insurance2025 - TECHNOLOGY
Is Technology Delivering Better Outcomes for Customers and Brokers/Insurers?

Technology has radically changed business models in all industries. Insurers and brokers will be no exception despite its complexity. Technology offers enormous benefits for each stakeholder in the insurance industry including insurers, brokers and customers. But has technology already delivered on its promise and delivered better outcomes for the insurance industry?

Greg Brown, Partner, Oxbow Partners
Nyasha Kuwana, Head of Product, FloodFlash
Todd Zino, Chief Product and Technology Officer, By Miles

SUITE 3

14:30 - 14:55 | Insurance2025 - WORKFORCE
Insurance’ People Strategy after Covid-19: How do you manage a hybrid workforce? Best Practices

It is safe to say that Covid has changed the way we work forever. Insurers and other businesses had to adapt to a remote working force which presents both opportunities and challenges. Offering working from home is now a must when attracting and retaining top talent. Given the shortage for highly qualified staff and the fierce competition for talent from the Tech sector, the insurance industry needs to be highly competitive. The insurance industry needs a flexible and innovative talent management approach that would enable it to attract the brightest talent while offering the required flexibility.

Victoria Canton, Group HR Director, Clear Group
Lara Pedley, Global Managing Director, ISC Group
Sam White, Chair, Freedom Services Group / Stella Insurance

15:30 - 16:00 Refreshments & Networking Break

16:00 - 16:30Future of the broking industry: How will eTrading and technology change the role of brokers?

There is a lot of talk about technology and how it can transform the insurance broking industry. But what is the big picture and are we looking at technology from the right angle? While a lot of talk has been about the application of technology, this session will delve into two themes: problems that technology is trying to solve and what will be the future role of brokers.

Roger Flaxman, Principal Consultant & Executive Chairman, Flaxman Partners
Wayne Jefferson, Head of eTrading, Applied Systems
Paul Richmond, Product Manager, Novidea

16:30 - 17:00The Next Systemic Event in the Insurance Industry: How will Insurers Combat New Risks?

The general insurance industry is facing a lot of different emerging risks such as the climate change, cyber security, armed conflict to ageing population. The industry has successfully absorbed events like the 9/11 terrorist attacks, hurricanes and other extreme weather events and the Covid-19 pandemic. The industry can better prepare for the next threat by filling protection gaps and assess possible opportunities.

James Baum, Head of Commercial Risk, AON
George Beattie, Head of Incubation Underwriting, Beazley
David Williams, Non Exec Director, HUMN.AI

17:00 Conference close