How to Control Insurance Premium Increases

This post is part of a series sponsored by The Detection Group.

“Yes, insurance premiums are increasing. And while you will never have complete control over those increases, you do have the power to minimize them.”
-Laurie Conner, President & CEO of The Detection Group®

I can’t tell you the number of customers I speak to who call to thank us for our support in helping them protect their buildings from water damage losses AND consequently their insurance expense budgets.

Whether you have a history of damage loss claims or not, it has been widely reported by many of the world’s largest insurance brokerage firms, as well as building owners, that the cost of property insurance is rapidly escalating for the CRE category. Even those with a stellar record may be facing premium increases in the double-digit range. The worst of the worst could see triple digit premium increases, which could be 100% to 300% or more and accompanied by a reduction in coverage, more exclusions, and mandatory recommendations to improve their Risk Profile.

To complicate matters further, reinsurers are reducing the amount of risk (referred to as capacity) they are willing to assume and increasing the amount of risk primary insurers must accept before the reinsurers with participate. They are also increasing premiums they charge the primary carriers.

Loss History, which is a measure of past performance for a minimum of 3 years, and often 5 or 10 years, is a critical component in any Underwriting Analysis that affects premium increases. But not the only component.

Recent increases are not a result of high spikes in normal property damage claims attributed to typical water and fire events. But are a result of the enormous property losses the reinsurance industry, which insures the Primary Insurer, has experienced due to natural disasters like the wildfires in California; repeated flooding in the Southeast; frequent tornados; and hurricanes spanning the coastal areas from Texas to Maine.

So how can commercial building owners be proactive in managing their insurance premiums? First, they can ensure their property is in sync with the best practices that meet Underwriting Desirability Metrics, such as thorough property maintenance and complying with updated carrier Risk Management Policies.

Then, not only put in place the standard commercial building protective safeguards such as fire sprinklers, smoke detection alarms, fire alarms and security systems, but try to educate yourselves on the vast array of new, readily available, and relatively inexpensive wireless technology sensors designed to quickly identify hazards to infrastructure systems inherent in the commercial real estate sector. That is where we come in at The Detection Group.

The Detection Group’s FM Approved Trident wireless water leak detection system is suitable for any size or age building and provides 24/7/365 protection against water leak damage. Not only does it immediately notify personnel about the precise location of a water leak so it can be fixed quickly, but the system has the capability to shut off the flow of water to that leak as well.

Less water leak flow means:

• Less damage
• Lower damage losses
• Less tenant disruption
• Quicker repairs and cheaper clean up
• Continuation of tenant rent revenue streams
• Avoiding insurance premium and deductible increases due to high damage Loss Ratios
• Maintaining the level of coverage you need without Carrier Exclusions or mandatory recommendations
• Optimizing your Risk Profile (desirability) as an insured

So, while you do not have total control over your insurance premiums, you can affect the amount of those increases with technology. And be sure to ask your carrier if discounts are available for installing new sensor systems like the Trident wireless water leak detection system.

Learn more at thedetectiongroup.com