In the insurance industry, history sometimes has a habit of repeating itself. “Having worked in the personal accident (PA) market for 15 years, I’m seeing the same trends that I thought were consigned to the past,” says Hiscox’s Henry Weston-Simons, Senior Personal Accident Underwriter. “When I started out, war business was a big thing in PA, which resulted in a number of losses. So, markets pulled out of that risk, before going back in again and now there is increased capacity available for war risks in volatile regions of the world as Lloyd’s syndicates look for top-line growth." The result is too much competition in the London PA market which is putting pressure on rates. But, despite the repetition of this cycle, Weston-Simons adds: “There is still plenty to be optimistic about for a class of insurance business where, contrary to many other lines, underwriting continues to be “as much an art as it is a science".
Underwriting big stars
Weston-Simons came into insurance via a spell in broking construction risk and then a move into PA at Willis with the attraction of writing cover for sportspeople. “The PA market back then was similar to terrorism insurance in terms of being much more of a face-to-face trading environment – brokers touring Lloyd’s looking to place PA risks from famous people like football stars with substantial sums insured. That was a big appeal for me. The other impression I got from my early days was what a friendly market PA was…and still is today.”
Ready for a new challenge, Weston-Simons switched to underwriting and joined the Marketform Lloyd’s syndicate. “I learned so much working there and going in at the deep end, getting exposure to all these different lines of PA business.”
Insuring an American daredevil
One of the great things about underwriting PA, Weston-Simons adds, is the diversity of risks that come across an underwriter’s desk. “I remember an American daredevil attempting a record-breaking jump with a pickup truck over a fake, staged western town in the US. I was quite junior at the time and the broker’s eyes lit up when I put a rate down. Panicking slightly that I hadn’t done a good job, I remember watching the jump live streamed on YouTube on a Saturday – the good news is, he managed to do it twice without mishap but the third jump didn’t go so well, and he crashed spectacularly. With the rest of the weekend to worry about it, I thought the inevitable claim would be career ending. Thankfully, the truck daredevil survived, and the claim was quite a modest one. I’d write that risk very differently today, but that knowledge only comes with experience.”
After Marketform rebranded into Neon, which went into runoff in 2020, Weston-Simons found a role at Willis Re. “I enjoyed three years there, but in February 2023 the opportunity came up to work at Hiscox."
Rise of the influencer
How then has the nature of PA underwriting changed over the years? "Face-to-face underwriting was a big thing for PA risks, but this has changed over the years. As a PA team, we keep regular Box hours in Lloyd’s, but most risks will come through via email,” says Weston-Simons. In addition, the profile of the individuals looking for cover has also changed. The PA market In London has always been famous for the diverse range of people it insures from sports stars to actors and musicians, but a more recent trend has been the demand for cover from new occupations such as social media influencers. “We’ve seen some influencers recently who can be harder to rate because they're usually paid by short-term endorsements and don’t have a consistent salary record to base a price on,” explains Weston-Simons. “It’s a characteristic of PA that there is often not the data available which means having experience in this class continues to be critical when using judgment to underwrite risks like influencers, gig economy workers, or medical staff heading to active war zones.” That doesn’t mean, though, that there is no room for data analytics. “Looking ahead, we will see the use of more data analytics and modelling of PA risk.”
Market prospects
Despite the challenges of managing the insurance cycle, and competition among providers, Weston-Simons remains optimistic about the PA markets potential. “The prospects for this market are very good. There are some tremendously talented people underwriting and broking PA risks, and London will continue to be a global centre of expertise.”
And as for the future of face-to-face trading? “I'd encourage brokers to come and see us at the Box – as there is still no substitute for face-to-face trading when it comes to some of the more unusual PA risks we like to see,” says Weston-Simons.