Healix, the leading global independent health, travel, and security related risk management solutions provider, has launched its annual Risk Outlook report, identifying the five major risks to businesses around the world over the next 12 months.

Economic uncertainty and unrest

With domestic measures gradually easing and the return of international travel gathering pace, the shoots of a global economic recovery have begun to emerge. This recovery is not equal, however, and a gap is widening between advanced and developing economies, owing primarily to vaccine inequity and a lack of financial support. Growth rates in poorer countries are behind their Western counterparts, influenced by a lack of testing, inadequate medical capacity and disproportionate death rates. This is creating even more economic disparity.

Anger at responses to the COVID-19 pandemic has added fuel to the fire during unrest in Tunisia, Colombia, Lebanon and South Africa. Knock-on effects such as poverty, unemployment and the removal of subsidies are all potential drivers for unrest which governments are facing in 2022, not least in emerging markets.   

Supply chain constraints

Following a dramatic fall during the pandemic, consumer demand is rising, which suppliers and retailers are struggling to meet. Bottlenecks are occurring within supply chains globally, owing to a wide range of factors including a lack of labour to backlogs at ports.

The political fallout of this is significant, with businesses scrambling to fill vacant positions while markets remain sceptical about long-term security, owing to the impact further COVID restrictions could have on the labour market. There are no quick fixes for the issues driving the supply chain backlogs and it is likely that businesses and consumers will continue to feel the impact of this well into 2022.

The rise of ransomware

Last year, hostile actors exploited the opportunities that remote working provided to infiltrate networks. With a huge increase in devices working outside of companies’ perimeter networks, potential avenues of infiltration include phishing attacks and vulnerabilities with remote desktop protocols.

Notwithstanding the immediate disruption a ransomware attack can cause, the long-term impact is significant. Reputational risks are heightened, especially if the news of a ransomware attack becomes public or involves customer data. As criminals continue to create more advanced tools to expose and exploit network vulnerabilities, cyber-attacks remain high on the risk agenda for 2022.

The next pandemic

Before COVID-19, many of the pandemic planning exercises focused on an influenza-like respiratory virus. Two years after the onset of COVID-19, epidemiologists continue to warn of the threat of an influenza epidemic. The pandemic has not eliminated the threat, but sharpened the focus on how to avoid it.

There are currently 26 virus families in existence that are now seen as viable threats to the way we live. Thus, surveillance systems around the world will need to be aware of these potential threats to the world order throughout the next 12 months.

A climate in crisis

Extreme weather is a frequently neglected factor in risk analysis, particularly for developed countries, but the frequency and intensity of such events is only set to increase over the coming decades due to the escalating impacts of climate change.

The gravity of this risk has been reinforced by multiple divergent events throughout 2021, including devastating flash flooding in the Eifel region, which killed more than 200 people, and severe heat waves hitting North West America in June, which caused hundreds of excess deaths, mass disruption and sparked wildfires.

The increasing regularity of such events will pose significant challenges over the coming years and businesses must be prepared to address them.

Chris Job, Director of Risk Management Services at Healix, comments, “This year, there has been an increase in global travel, particularly for businesses, as face-to-face interactions become preferable following months of virtual meetings. This increase will see familiar risks and challenges re-emerge for organisations in terms of ensuring the health, safety and security of their people and assets, which for the last 18 months have slipped down the agenda. 

“As we continue the return to normal, businesses will need to provide more reassurance to their employees and instil confidence that they have the necessary plans and resilience programmes in place to protect their people, assets and operations. Healix’s Risk Outlook report aims to provide businesses with insights into the key risks that could adversely affect them, and in doing so, help them to prepare their business and mitigate consequences where possible.”

You can download the full report here.

Healix International has announced the appointment of Mike Webb as Chairman of Healix International. Taking over Mike Webb’s role is Charlie Butcher, currently Commercial Director of the business, who has been promoted to the position of Chief Executive Officer.

By becoming Chairman, Mike Webb, who has been Healix International’s CEO for four years, will continue to be actively involved in the company’s ongoing activity. Under his leadership, Healix International has significantly improved its financial performance as well as growing its range of products and services and has seen a very strong commercial performance despite the challenges of Covid, with the Company consistently driving innovation and fostering a customer centric culture.

Charlie Butcher becomes CEO of Healix International from June 2021. Charlie joined the Company in 2006 as Finance Director and was promoted to Commercial Director in 2019. Over the last two years he has achieved considerable sales success in Europe, the USA and Asia Pacific. 

“I am very much looking forward to this exciting new role, building on my extensive experience of the Healix International business over the last 15 years”, said Charlie Butcher.  “More than ever, companies are looking for the safest and most effective ways to get their employees working abroad again. It falls under a company’s duty of care to ensure the personnel they send abroad receive the best possible support measures to enable this to happen.

“Local security and medical facilities can vary dramatically across borders, and employers need to know their workforce has a support network in place. That is where Healix International comes in. Healix medical and security teams work closely together to deliver an integrated risk management and assistance operation, helping to fulfil employers’ duty of care responsibilities.

“I look forward to continuing to oversee the onward commercial success of Healix and working closely with Mike Webb and the Executive Board and feel very confident that we have the right team in place to achieve on-going success.”

Mike Webb added: “I am very proud of the part I have played as a member of the team that has enabled Healix International to deliver profitable growth and be seen as one of the most successful medical and security risk management companies. Healix is a great business that has a proven track record for delivering high quality services to many blue chip companies and government organisations.  I look forward to working with Charlie and the rest of the Executive Board in my new role as Chairman, building on great foundations.”

“We would like to thank Mike for his strong leadership and contribution to the success of Healix International” said Peter Mason, Founder.  “As for Charlie, he brings talent, commitment, vision and years of solid experience to the job. I wish them both much success in their respective future roles and challenges.”

• 69% of businesses said the long-term impact of Covid-19 on their business will be negative
• Businesses twice as likely to say impact of Brexit has been negative rather than positive
• Cyber is a top-five risk as businesses increase homeworking and diversify through digital
• Only 11% of businesses said climate change and extreme weather events was a top-five risk
• 89% of businesses believe they are resilient to business risks
• Only 47% said they regularly undertake health and safety risk assessments
• Report comes as Aviva launches a new risk management website to provide expert guidance and support

British businesses have loosened their grip on the climate emergency as they continue to battle the Covid-19 crisis, with many employers stating that their business is not exposed to any risks as a result of climate change, Aviva’s first annual Risk Insights Report¹ shows.

Commissioned by Aviva with YouGov, the research canvassed the opinions of 1,260 business leaders from organisations of all sizes, industries and locations across the UK.

The report charts the top concerns on the minds of British employers, with Covid-19, Brexit, and business and supply chain interruption dominating the top three spots. Climate change ranked as the number 13 risk faced by businesses, with just 11% identifying it and extreme weather events as one of their top five concerns. 

The Top 10 Risks facing UK Businesses*

*Business leaders were asked to select up to five risks. The table ranks the top risks by the proportion of businesses that stated that risk is one of the five risks they are most exposed to 

While 89% of businesses believe they are resilient to business risks, less than half (47%) of all businesses said they regularly undertake health and safety risk assessments, fire risk assessments (33%) or business continuity planning (28%). This is especially concerning, given that some assessments are required by law (e.g. health and safety, fire). Small businesses in particular are struggling to prepare: 42% of small businesses said they have not carried out any of the main risk management activities in the past 12 months.  

Coronavirus

Operating in the midst of a global pandemic has presented businesses with an ongoing series of challenges of a breadth and depth previously unknown. Looking to the future, 69% of businesses said the long-term impact of Covid-19 on their business will be negative. For 39% of businesses, lower growth is expected as a result. So it is not surprising that businesses said they are more “worried” about the impact of Covid-19 than any other risk in the research.

Brexit

Business leaders were more than twice as likely to say that the impact of Brexit on their business has been negative rather than positive. This outlook reflects the risks businesses face from legislative and regulatory changes, which was the second largest risk business leaders said they are exposed to, after public health events.

Businesses say they face a wide range of risks during a potentially bumpy period as the UK seeks to develop new trading relationships outside the EU. For example, supply chains that previously relied on the free movement of goods and services across the EU have had to be reviewed and revised.  Aviva’s research shows that three-in-ten (31%) businesses said they were actively looking to source from local or British suppliers to help ensure greater transparency and control, especially as consumer attention on a business’ supply chain has heightened. One-in-six (17%) business leaders identified a shortage of skilled workers as a top-five risk for their business, reflecting uncertainty in the supply of labour post-Brexit.

Climate Change

Only 11% of businesses ranked climate change and extreme weather events as one of their top five risks. While current risks facing British businesses are pressing, they should not be the only risk management and prevention considerations taken by businesses.

More than one-in-three (36%) businesses said they were not exposed to any risks as a result of climate change. Businesses cannot ignore the very real risks associated with climate change and climate-related extreme weather events. Those businesses that did recognise climate-related risks said they are most exposed to economic and market risks (29%) as a result of the climate emergency, followed by regulatory and legal changes (24%) and operational disruption (21%).

Cyber

In response to the challenges of operating in the midst of a pandemic, nearly half (48%) of businesses said they increased their digital adoption of technology. They did so largely to reduce their cost base (28%) and diversify their operations (27%). However, the migration online also poses a significant and growing risk, with more than one-in-four businesses (27%) – and one-in-three large corporates (36%) – listing the risk of cyber attacks as a top risk faced by their business.

The impact of a cyber attack can be crippling: 44% of businesses said they would face operational disruption in the event of a cyber attack; 42% said loss of data; and one-in-three said loss of customer confidence (33%), financial impact (33%) and loss of reputation (32%) would all stem from a cyber attack. However, 20% of business leaders said they did not think they were exposed to any Cyber risks, highlighting the need for greater awareness of cyber risks.

Nick Major, Interim Managing Director, Commercial Insurance, Aviva, said, “Businesses have had to deal with a tremendous amount of uncertainty in the past year, and the agility and determination they have shown in response to the challenges they have faced has been extraordinary.

“The pandemic has underscored how increasingly interconnected and complex the risk landscape is; the importance of a strategic, proactive programme of risk management and prevention has never been clearer.

“Looking ahead, the challenge for businesses will be to juggle a multitude of pressing risk management priorities: managing the uncertainty of operating in a current pandemic, knock-on risks such as supply chain disruption, emerging risks such as cyber, while not forgetting fire and flood, and the evolving threat of climate change, which in the long-term pose some of the most disastrous risks to business. The ability to manage the immediate threat, but retain an eye on the evolving and longer-term risks is going to be critical for business.

“The explosion of homeworking and the move online through  successive lockdowns has created an opportunity for cyber criminals; as our dependency on technology grows, so too must our emphasis on the prevention and protection from the increasing threat of cyber attacks. Cyber is now one of the biggest risks businesses face.

“British businesses are strong and resilient, and will emerge from the challenges of the current pandemic and Brexit. But evolving risks such as cyber and climate change remain the most significant long-term threats, not just for business, but for society. Failure to address the climate emergency now jeopardises our collective future, and UK businesses have a responsibility to act today to ensure a better tomorrow.”

At a time where 83% of businesses recognise the need to maintain or increase their focus on risk management strategies, quick access to expert guidance and support is key. Aviva’s report coincides with the launch of the new Aviva Risk Management Solutions website to assist all businesses large or small, providing access to guidance to help identify, understand and mitigate the current, and – importantly – new emerging risks they face.  The new website can be found at https://www.aviva.co.uk/risksolutions/.

¹ Aviva commissioned YouGov to conduct research amongst business leaders in a variety of industries in the UK in order to understand their views on topics such as business risks, changes to ways of working, ESG, regulatory challenges and the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Fieldwork was conducted between 3rd - 24th September 2020 and  included views of 1,260 UK senior business leaders from 648 small, 312 mid-market and 300 corporate companies (as defined by their annual revenue), from a variety of industries: Professional and business services, manufacturing and industry, construction and real estate, arts, entertainment and leisure, technology and electronic, retail and wholesale, motor trade, charities, and the public sector.

HCC Insurance Holdings, Inc. has announced that it has acquired On Call International LLC (On Call). On Call designs and markets customized self-insured and indemnified travel risk management plans, including medical, travel, political and natural disaster coverage. Founded in 1995, On Call is headquartered in Salem, New Hampshire. The company serves millions of travellers each year, and clients include travel agencies, academic institutions, insurance companies and leisure travelers. 

“On Call has a long and successful track record of providing unparalleled global travel risk management services, and HCC Specialty has benefited from these services as a satisfied client for five years,” said Bill Hubbard, President and Chief Executive Officer of HCC Specialty. “In today’s increasingly perilous world for travelers, we’ve brought this vital service in-house, helping us to increase our competitive edge by offering a superior customer experience.”

“By joining Tokio Marine HCC, On Call gains access to global expertise and unmatched products and services to expand our operations and further strengthen our world-class travel risk management offerings,” said Mike Kelly, Chief Executive Officer of On Call. “The backing of Tokio Marine Holdings, an industry-leading, international insurance company with over 30,000 employees, provides On Call and our millions of current and future members with incredible and innovative opportunities to build on our successes.”

Collinson Group has joined forces with leading security and crisis management specialist Security Exchange, in a strategic partnership to deliver a comprehensive travel risk management offering to the corporate market.

This enhances Collinson Group's current capability in the Corporate Travel arena - with a fully integrated corporate travel risk solution - to help corporate clients deliver their Duty of Care responsibilities to their travelling employees and expatriates. The alliance gives clients access to specialist end-to-end expertise for both medical and security risks, comprising risk consultancy, 24/7 medical and security assistance and emergency response, including evacuation and repatriation.

David Evans Managing Director, Insurance & Assistance at Collinson Group, said, "The widening geographical spread of today's mobile workforce makes it essential that those responsible for the safety and security of their travelling staff have access to the best possible specialist support. Our research shows that most frequent business travellers and expatriates have underlying concerns about their security when working overseas; and relying on a purely insurance-based solution will not entirely mitigate many of the risks involved when working in less secure environments. Our alliance with Security Exchange will offer our clients a fully integrated corporate travel solution across both medical and security risks to give peace of mind to employers and employees when operating overseas."

Rupert Reid, Managing Director of Security Exchange, commented, "Our 25 years' operational experience in the security risk management arena, integrated into Collinson Group's global assistance network, means that our clients will benefit from a truly comprehensive and effective business travel service. With 24/7 access to both security and medical support through a single point of contact, and fronted by multi-skilled, multi-lingual customer service team, our clients will enjoy unprecedented levels of assistance when travelling."

1 January 2014: two car bombs exploded at the Jazeera Hotel near Mogadishu International Airport, killing 11 people; there was also indirect fire into Mogadishu International Airport with no casualties currently reported.

10 Reasons You Need Medical Insurance Before Travel to Somalia:

• 27 December 2013: a bomb exploded at a restaurant in Mogadishu, reportedly killing 11 people;
• 8 November 2013: 6 people were killed and scores injured after a car bomb attack on the Makkah Al-Mukarama Hotel in Mogadishu;
• 21 August 2013: gunmen attacked the convoy of a Swedish politician at the K4 junction in Mogadishu injuring her and killing 2 people;
• 12 July 2013: a grenade attack took place against the Barwaqo Hotel in Mogadishu killing 2 people and injuring several more: on the same day a suicide car bomb attack on an African Union convoy on the Maka al-Mukarama Road near Mogadishu Airport killed 4 people and left many others injured;
• 19 June 2013: in a complex attack, a car bomb exploded outside the UN Common Compound in Mogadishu: armed insurgents then entered the compound killing 8 local and international staff;
• 5 May 2013: a suicide car bomb was used to attack a Somali government convoy at the K4 Junction in Mogadishu, killing a number of people;
• 14 April 2013: a number of co-ordinated suicide and bomb attacks took place in Mogadishu at the Banadir High Court and close to the UN Common Compound; at least 28 people were killed with many more injured 18 March 2013: a car bomb exploded near the Presidential Palace in Mogadishu a number of people are reported to have been killed;
• 29 January 2013: there was suicide attack on the President’s compound killing a number of people;
• 7 November 2012: a car bomb exploded near the parliament compound in Mogadishu; at least one person was killed;
• 20 September 2012: an improvised explosive device (IED) was detonated, followed by two suicide bomb attacks at the Village Restaurant, a popular cafe in Mogadishu: the attack killed 21 people, including three journalists and injured 30 others.

Multi-Year Protection Covers Mining Firm Against Cyclone and Extreme Rainfall Risk.

Willis Group Holdings (NYSE:WSH), has designed and placed an innovative derivative-based risk transfer solution to protect Roy Hill Holdings Pty Ltd, an emerging global mining, rail and port venture, against the threat of cyclones and heavy rainfall delaying the construction of what will be the largest single-site iron ore mining operation in Australia. The transaction, which was completed ahead of the 2013 cyclone season, is backed by Endurance Global Weather, a leading global provider of weather risk management solutions and a subsidiary of Endurance Specialty Holdings Limited (NYSE:ENH).

Under the coverage, Roy Hill is protected from the financial impact of a named cyclone passing through a specified geographic area which encompasses the company's 55 million tonne per annum mining, rail and port project currently under construction in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The unique "cat-in-a-circle" solution, structured and executed by Willis's Global Weather Risk Practice, provides Roy Hill with event coverage based on the duration that a cyclone spends in the indemnification zone and the amount of cyclone-related rainfall across three Australian Bureau of Meteorology weather stations.

The transaction, which has a total limit of AUD56 million, spans two cyclone seasons and responds to these objectively defined cyclone and rainfall events occurring during the period of construction leading up to the mine becoming operational in 2015. The index-based cover differs from regular indemnity cover in that there is no requirement for the insured to prove any loss or damage to assets from the cyclone.

The indemnity is based purely upon the performance of the pre-agreed cyclone and rainfall indices.

Commenting on the solution, Barry Fitzgerald, Chief Executive Officer of Roy Hill, said "We are pleased that our insurance partners have been able to develop such a highly-tailored product to provide prudent risk management outcomes for the critical development phase of our project."

Steve Hearn, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Willis Group, said "Traditional construction and property policies will cover the damage caused by a cyclone, but not the financial impact of project delays and additional wages where there is no damage to the insured assets. This bespoke solution was designed to cover this traditionally uninsurable risk, which Roy Hill identified as a particular concern. Willis leveraged its sophisticated analytical capability to model the probability and impact of cyclones and heavy rainfall in this region of Australia, enabling Willis to structure and execute a solution led by Endurance which responds to Roy Hill's highly specific requirements."

John Charman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Endurance Specialty Holdings Ltd, commented: "This transformational risk solution is representative of our strong relationship with Willis globally as well as Endurance's commitment to creating strategic partnerships in the emerging Asia Pacific region. Working closely with Willis, we were able to combine our Global Weather team's analytic expertise with our long-term capacity and strong balance sheet to execute an innovative structure specific to Roy Hill's complex and unique risk exposures."

Aetna has announced that it has agreed to acquire UK based iPMI provider, InterGlobal. The terms of the transaction, which are not material to Aetna, were not disclosed.

Aetna expects to finance the acquisition from available resources. The transaction is expected to close during the first half of 2014 and be neutral to Aetna's financial results in 2014.

"The addition of InterGlobal to Aetna's international business will expand our footprint in fast-growing geographies, increase our membership and enhance our international penetration with individual, small and mid-sized business customers," said Mark T. Bertolini, Aetna chairman, CEO and president. "This acquisition will increase our presence in the marketplace for international private medical insurance where growth is being driven by dynamics such as the continued globalization of companies of all sizes, the growing population of high net worth individuals in emerging economies and reform efforts by governments around the world to increase access to health care."

Richard di Benedetto, president of Aetna International, added, "InterGlobal is well-established in the high-growth private medical insurance regions of the Middle East, Asia and Africa through a distribution model that incorporates local strategic partners and its own licenses. These strategic arrangements will allow us to offer our health care solutions locally to customers in about a dozen additional countries in those regions. InterGlobal also shares our commitment to customer focus and service excellence."

Stephen Hartigan, CEO of InterGlobal, said, "Aetna's position in the United States as a leading diversified health care benefits company is impressive. Their commitment to international development in the health insurance sector is shared by InterGlobal. We are looking forward to becoming part of the Aetna family."

InterGlobal's customer base includes individuals and families; employers; diplomatic staff; international schools and affinity groups. The company has approximately 300 employees primarily based in its operation centers in the U.K., Dubai and Singapore. InterGlobal also has a network of more than 3,000 providers, composed largely of outpatient and ancillary providers. InterGlobal has been honored by U.K.'s Cover magazine with the award for "International Private Medical Insurance Provider of the Year" for the past five years. InterGlobal has more than 65,000 medical members worldwide, and specializes in international private medical insurance for groups and individuals in the Middle East, Asia, Africa and Europe.

Increased capacity, competition and changing market dynamics have created a buyer's market for European cedants, according to Willis Re.

These market conditions, coupled with changing reinsurance buying patterns, are driving reinsurers to offer more flexibility and tailored solutions to European clients. Tony Melia, CEO of Willis Re International, said: "With large parts of Europe so far experiencing another year of exceptionally low natural peril loss activity, reinsurers are facing significant rating pressure on catastrophe programmes in loss free territories on the back of the excellent 2012 and 2013 results. Absent of a major loss event, we expect risk adjusted reductions of 5% to 10% for straight forward loss free property catastrophe business with the reductions on individual programmes being influenced by programme history and perceived profitability."

Reinsurers are also reviewing their view of risk on loss affected programmes, which together with the history of the placement and individual loss experience will determine the pricing level at renewal. Melia continued: "Even loss affected programmes will benefit from the current soft market conditions and will receive more modest adjustments than during previous pricing cycles. Above all though, the current market environment enables cedants to consider buying the reinsurance that they want, in addition to what they need. "Cedants should take advantage of reinsurers' flexibility and their willingness to provide company wide solutions to protect against earnings volatility alongside capital protections.

These, together with the use of reinsurance structures to consolidate risk appetites, are the underlying drivers of changing reinsurance strategies in the industry."

Sapiens International Corporation, (NASDAQ and TASE: SPNS), a global provider of innovative software solutions for the financial services industry, announced today that MLOZ, the National Federation of Independent Health Insurance Funds, offering services to more than 18% of the Belgian population, has selected Sapiens IDIT Software Suite, to manage its health insurance portfolio, in a multimillion dollar deal.

As part of the organization’s overall strategy to facilitate the health insurance services in Belgium, MLOZ will be implementing the Sapiens IDIT Software Suite to modernize its technology environment to support the provision and management of health insurances, including: mutual insurances ("SMA"), mandatory health insurances, and complementary health insurances. Anticipated benefits from this multi-year IDIT Software Suite implementation include:

Support for thousands of concurrent online users;

• A holistic view of the client;
• Ability to leverage data for improved customer relations;
• Improved time to market for new products;
• Best practices in product design and business process optimization;
• Reduced overall IT costs.

Commenting on the selection of Sapiens IDIT, MLOZ’s Managing Director, Xavier Brenez said, “We have selected Sapiens due to the rich business functionality of its software and the professionalism and quality of their personnel. We see a tremendous amount of value in Sapiens’ domain expertise and understanding of our unique business needs, as well as the cultural alignment between the organizations, which bodes well for the relationship going forwards.”

Roni Al-Dor, President and CEO of Sapiens commented, “We are proud to have MLOZ as our customer, and appreciate their recognition of our software and the value of our dedicated and skilled staff. MLOZ joins a growing and impressive portfolio of customers that have chosen to work with Sapiens, and we look forward to helping MLOZ derive the highest possible value from this solution.”

Al-Dor continued, “We see a lot of opportunities for Sapiens in the health insurance market and feel the MLOZ win validates our strong position and will help us to further expand our health market footprint.”

Yoel Amir, Managing Director, Sapiens General insurance & Non-life Division added, “The commitment MLOZ has shown to the Sapiens IDIT solution is a strong vote of confidence in both our product and team, and is testimony to the quality and value of the partnership developed between Sapiens and MLOZ during the selection process. The addition of MLOZ to the Sapiens client family further validates the value that IDIT Software Suite offers to health insurers.”