ISO Providing New Service for Insurers to Access Natural CAT Information

A new service from ISO’s LOCATION geographic information system is now available to help insurers better manage their exposure to natural catastrophes for more profitable underwriting decisions.

Developed by AIR Worldwide Corporation (AIR), ISO’s catastrophe modeling subsidiary, Natural Catastrophe Service from LOCATION provides reliable risk profiles on every address in the continental U.S. Insurers access the information online via ISO PassportSM — ISO’s electronic delivery system that allows insurers instant access to underwriting tools from ISO and other information providers through a single interface.

Based on detailed data from AIR, Natural Catastrophe Service provides address-specific risk information for hurricanes, earthquakes and severe thunderstorms. The service provides the long-term average annual loss, as well as 100-year and 250-year losses for a typical property at a specific location for each peril. The relative risk of a given address can also be compared with that of other addresses in the same county and state.

The service provides additional information pertinent to the earthquake peril, such as soil type, distance to nearest significant fault, and landslide and liquefaction potential. Data relevant to hurricanes include storm surge potential, elevation and terrain. Tornado, hailstorm, and straight-line windstorm frequencies are also included.

“The LOCATION Natural Catastrophe Service offers online access to the same detailed hazard data AIR utilizes in its sophisticated catastrophe models,” said Uday Virkud, senior vice president at AIR. “The service provides underwriters with valuable information to enable better compliance with company underwriting guidelines and improved underwriting decisions.”

For more information on ISO’s Natural Catastrophe Service, e-mail: info@iso.com.