Insurance companies can better manage exposures
New York, April 309, 2008 - Guy Carpenter & Company, LLC, the
leading global risk and reinsurance specialist, and WSI Corporation,
the leader in weather-driven business solutions, announced the
introduction of WSI LiveCat Forecast, an innovative service for the
insurance marketplace that provides accurate 10-day predictions of the
path and intensity of upcoming hurricanes and tropical storms.
The
WSI LiveCat Forecast service, developed in collaboration with Guy
Carpenter, will enable insurance companies to better manage exposures
and develop recovery plans with more precision. WSI LiveCat Forecast
employs state-of-the-art meteorological models to predict the
direction, intensity and duration of a named tropical storm or
hurricane, along with U.S. landfall probability, five days beyond the
standard five-day forecast period currently predicted by the National
Hurricane Center (NHC). This patent-pending technique allows insurers
to establish advantageous market positions days ahead of those relying
on NHC information alone.
�WSI and Guy Carpenter have developed
a forecast that goes well beyond what is currently available for the
insurance marketplace. By applying WSI�s deep understanding of weather
prediction to advance hurricane forecasting to the next level, WSI
LiveCat Forecast gives insurance companies an edge by predicting a
storm�s path and intensity up to five days longer than the National
Hurricane Center,� said Ira Scharf, General Manager of WSI�s Energy and
Risk Services.
�The partnership between Guy Carpenter and WSI
resulted in a more complete approach to risk management, by combining a
robust meteorological tool with industry-specific knowledge,�
said
Michelle Harnick, Managing Director, Guy Carpenter. �As WSI LiveCat
Forecast provides insurers with extra time to identify areas of
greatest exposure and mitigate their risk, Guy Carpenter can help its
clients create effective reinsurance solutions.�
Guy Carpenter
will provide WSI LiveCat Forecast to its clients through i-aXs�, the
firm�s award-winning online data management platform, and will develop
additional reinsurance products based on the forecast tool.
Beginning on June 1, 2008, for each named tropical storm or hurricane, WSI LiveCat Forecast will issue:
Track and intensity forecasts for each named tropical storm or hurricane, twice daily, up to 10 days out
Landfall probability forecasts that are dependent upon storm-specific track uncertainty rather than historical error statistics
Weather forecasting skill comparable to or better than the National Hurricane Center
WSI LiveCat Forecast is available either online or via GIS shape files.
About Guy Carpenter
Guy
Carpenter & Company, LLC is the world�s leading risk and
reinsurance specialist and a part of the Marsh & McLennan
Companies. Guy Carpenter creates and executes reinsurance solutions and
makes available capital market solutions* for clients worldwide through
2,600 professionals across the globe. The firm�s full breadth of
services includes 16 centers of excellence in Accident & Health,
Agriculture, Alternative Risk Transfer, Environmental, General
Casualty, Investment Banking*, Life & Annuity, Marine & Energy,
Professional Liability, Program Manager Solutions, Property,
Retrocessional, Structured Risk, Surety, Terror Risk, and Workers
Compensation. In addition, Guy Carpenter�s Instrat� unit utilizes
industry-leading quantitative skills and modeling tools that optimize
the reinsurance decision-making process and help make the firm�s
clients more successful. Guy Carpenter�s website address is www.guycarp.com.
*
Securities or investments, as applicable, are offered in the United
States through GC Securities, a division of MMC Securities Corp., a US
registered broker-dealer and member FINRA/SIPC. Main Office: 1166
Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10036. Phone: (212) 345-5000.
Advice on securities or investments in the European Union is provided
through GC Securities Ltd., authorized and regulated by the Financial
Services Authority. Reinsurance products are placed through qualified
affiliates of Guy Carpenter. MMC Securities Corp., GC Securities Ltd.
and Guy Carpenter are affiliates owned by Marsh & McLennan
Companies.
About WSI Corporation
WSI is the most trusted
source of weather information across the globe. Top insurance, risk
management companies and financial institutions around the globe trust
WSI to supply them with easy-to-use, timely and expert weather guidance
to help anticipate market volatility, mitigate risk and make critical
decisions with confidence. For more information, please visit us on the
web at www.wsi.com or call us at 877.WSI.CORP or +44.121.233.7600.