(Image credit: Joe Plenio.)
Guidewire Software (San Mateo, Calif.) has acquired HazardHub, a San Diego-based InsurTech provider of API-driven property risk insights to the property/causalty insurance industry. HazardHub powers decisions for 110+ organizations, including insurers, reinsurers, brokers, MGAs, and other InsurTechs. Insurers use HazardHub to underwrite micro-segment rating zones, manage risks profitably, according to a joint announcement..
Roger Arnemann, general manager, Analytics, Guidewire Software.
HazardHub describes its market role as curating, analyzing, and distilling vast amounts of data to deliver a comprehensive, national catalog of risks that may damage or destroy property, including perils from air (wind, hail, tornado, lightning), water (flood, freeze, coastal storm surge), earth (earthquake, brownfield, Superfund), and fire (wildfire and fire protection). In less than 2 seconds, HazardHub’s API provides risk scores and the supporting underlying information for any property in the United States, according to a statement about Guidewire’s acquisition of the firm.
An important insurance technology firm acquiring a rapidly growing InsurTech provider of property-related data is significant news, but there may be an even more interesting story behind the story, according to Donald Light, a Director in Celent’s (Boston) North America Property/Casualty Insurance Practice. “ HazardHub provides its customers with data—a lot of data—along with related scores and analytic tools,” he says. “Guidewire is fundamentally a provider of operational and digital software, analytic tools, along with some data. Its earlier acquisition of Cyence bridged analytics and data.”
Donald Light, Director, North America Property/Casualty Practice, Celent.
“Guidewire’s acquisition of HazardHub is a significant step into the increasingly critical role of providing data to insurers,” adds Light. “As such, this may represent an important new strategic direction for Guidewire: supplying data to insurers, which they can analyze—perhaps with the help of other Guidewire solutions—and turn into insights to improve the pricing, underwriting, and claims decisions they make using Guidewire’s policy, rating, and claims solutions.”
“Underwriters, agents, and claims adjusters will power smarter decisions with risk insights embedded directly into core workflows” comments Mike Rosenbaum, CEO, Guidewire Software. “Embedding HazardHub’s comprehensive property risk data service into Guidewire’s industry-leading platform will drive tremendous value for our customers and the P&C insurance industry.”
Bob Frady, CEO, HazardHub.
“We are excited about what HazardHub has built and even more by their passion, bold vision, and the host of challenges that we can tackle in combining their data and expertise with our market-leading platform,” says Roger Arnemann, general manager, Analytics, Guidewire Software. “Their deep GIS expertise is a perfect complement to our existing team of over 170 Guidewire Analytics specialists in data science, actuarial modeling, data provisioning, and application development. P&C insurers who have relied upon Guidewire Analytics’ robust casualty data and insights will now also have access to rich property data and scores from a single trusted partner.”
Getting Data and Risk Scores into More Insurer Workflows
“We see joining Guidewire as the best way to get our hazard data and risk scores into more insurer workflows to positively impact more insurers and policyholders,” comments Bob Frady, co-founder and CEO, HazardHub. “We are eager to expand the power of our API-driven insights and bring innovative solutions to market as part of Guidewire, the technology leader serving the P&C insurance industry.”
Editor’s note: A quote from Donald Light was added to this story after initial publication.
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