ACE to release 'appetite app' for brokers

Insurer ACE is planning to release an app to tell brokers about its underwriting appetite by line, sector, and client size.

UK and Ireland president David Robinson told Insurance Times the ACE Appetite App, which will be released this month, would “resolve brokers’ frustration with the ‘slow nos’ they sometimes get from the market.

“Rather than giving brokers a list of exclusions, it tells them what we have a real appetite for and where we are really good,” he said.

The app will also let brokers give an indicative quote to customers from on-site visits.

“For certain products, you can just put the name in there and then. Then they’ll have to answer six to 10 more questions and they’ll be able to bind the business.

“Clients are increasingly moving towards doing things instantly. That’s where the business needs to move too,” he said.

Regions and products

The launch is one of a series of measures by the insurer to become more accessible to brokers and their clients.

It ramped up its presence outside London with the opening of its thirteenth regional office in Aberdeen a year ago and appointment of customer relationship managers for corporate clients outside London.

ACE previously offered brokers a customer relationship manager to talk directly to their clients for major risks, which it defines as clients with a turnover of £0.5bn.

It is also preparing to launch several new policy wordings following broker and client feedback.

They include employment practices liability and employers and public liability for pharmaceutical biotech businesses to protect exposures and clinical trials across multiple global locations.

In November it launched ACE Offshore to provide small and mid-size oil and gas contractors with protection against pollution damage and legal assistance if a claim arises.

It is also increasingly its environmental impairment liability capacity at Lloyd’s from $30m (£18m) to $50m (£31m).

Saturday morning phone calls

Since their appointments in April 2012, Robinson and chief operating officer Phil Sharpe have appointed three claims customer relationship managers (CCRMs) for corporate clients outside London.

“We worked very closely with Airmic and asked their members what keeps them awake at night. Claims is a big issue for them,” Sharpe said.

“Our CCRM sits with the client and goes through the claims protocol, the ‘what happens if’. We call it the Saturday morning phone call.”