High Five: Catch up on the biggest stories this week

This week saw travellers left stranded at airports after a UK air traffic glitch affected flights across the globe.

On Monday (28 August 2023), passengers were hit with flight delays and cancellations due to a technical failure that meant controllers were not able to automatically process flight plans.

The issue has now been resolved, although the National Air Traffic Service has warned travellers that disruption could continue for the next few days as flights slowly start to return to normal.

However, what does it have to do with insurance? According to Blink Parametric chief executive Sid Mouncey, such incidents like this cause a spike in claims.

And in turn, he told technology editor Clare Ruel that the industry should use the recent chaos at airports as a case study to ”seize an opportunity” and prioritise “proactive” insurance solutions, such a parametric insurance.

• Does the UK flight cancellation chaos create a need for parametric insurance?

This week also saw Howden’s head of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) Peter Blanc sit down with deputy news editor James Cowen. He warned brokers that they should not become the “last one standing” when it comes to being acquired as the “significant” reduction in the amount of those trading in the UK continues.

• Blanc issues M&A warning to brokers as market is ’definitely shrinking’

Meanwhile, James MacBeth, managing director at Markerstudy-owned automotive glazing firm Auto Windscreens, warned that hundreds of thousands of cars on UK roads could be at risk from not having had their windscreen recalibrated, with insurers often declining to check the status of this procedure at policy inception.

• Lack of windscreen recalibration creates potential risk for road users – Auto Windscreens

Gregg Barrett, chief executive at insurance industry technology supplier Waterstreet, also warned that there has been a “noticeable shift” in how insurance firms are directing their technology spend, “with a pivot towards front-facing and operational technology”.

• Insurance firms ‘pivot’ towards front-facing and operational technology

And finally, amidst the ongoing transformation of the insurance industry outside of its traditional centre in London, junior reporter Chantal Kapani questions whether the rise of regional hubs represent a threat or an opportunity for the London market.

• Is regional growth a double-edged sword for the London market?