Beazley's Kleiterp: Demand increasing for terrorism insurance in Europe
Demand for standalone terrorism cover is rising across Europe amid concerns around contested elections and sub-limits being placed on strikes, riots, and civil commotion (SRCC) exposures in property placements, according to Beazley’s Fred Kleiterp.
"With elections taking place in many countries, not everyone is always happy with the outcomes or how those elections are being run. This leads to increased political tension. In property cover, SRCC is usually sub-limited, so it leads to a demand for more standalone terrorism cover," Kleiterp, Beazley’s managing director for Europe, told The Insurer TV.
He said Beazley was taking steps to boost awareness of its specialty products in the European market.
"In Europe, we're mainly known for financial lines and the cyber market, but we're looking to become more broadly known as a specialty insurer here as well," Kleiterp added.
Despite Europe being a relatively small portion of Beazley's total book, Kleiterp said it made a strong contribution to Beazley's record $729 million H1 profit, relative to its size.
"Europe contributed to that fantastic result quite well on a relative basis. On an absolute basis, Europe is the smallest of the three platforms that we run," he said. Beazley’s largest platforms are in Lloyd’s of London and in North America.
European cyber market grows
Kleiterp also noted the increasing capacity in the European cyber market, with significant potential for growth as many corporates are still not purchasing enough cyber insurance.
"There are still a lot of corporates that are not buying or not buying enough cyber insurance. There is potential for market growth in the years to come, and we’re looking to be part of that," he noted.
The recent CrowdStrike outages have raised awareness for the importance of cyber cover.
“Such a scenario could have been a true hacking event, which would have been different. It definitely raised awareness, which is helpful,” Kleiterp remarked.
Kleiterp also discussed AI's dual role as both a risk and a solution for the insurance industry.
"AI is not only a risk, it's also a solution. We try to understand what risk exposures come with AI and build resilience for ourselves and our clients. AI helps us identify future threats or emerging threats," he said.
He emphasised how AI was also changing the talent needs of the insurance industry.
"The type of talent we need is changing with the risk landscape. We need more people literate in technology, AI, and everything that comes with it. It's a very interesting opportunity for young people to get into the insurance industry," Kleiterp concluded.