Multinational companies want greater data transparency in their insurance programs, according to Zurich Global Corporate Head of International Program Distribution Petra Riga.

Managers want access to information about their cover, to gain insights on risk engineering and to study claims data over time, she told insuranceNEWS.com.au.

“We see this more and more. They want to have the data and work with it, to use the data for analytics.”

Zurich has developed online information systems for customers and brokers to access information on insurance programs.

Ms Riga says the Asia-Pacific and Latin America regions are fuelling strong demand for international programs.

“Corporations from outside these regions are investing into them, creating a need for new covers. But it’s also going vice versa, with many corporations in the mid-market segment, where customers are becoming more international, needing global insurance solutions.”

She says there is demand for new cyber and privacy covers, plus corporate accident and business travel insurance.

Companies are also seeking protection for environmental liability, as governments respond to calls for action on pollution.

Ms Riga says compliance issues are a major headache for multinationals.

“One of the biggest challenges for international corporations is to stay on top of all the regulatory and tax changes. Insurance buyers are not just looking for traditional risk transfer any more. Some are looking for a full service offering in hundreds of markets around the world.”

She says brokers whose clients are expanding internationally must be aware of an insurer’s ability to fully understand the global market and the national regulations that present issues on identifying risk, where cover may be written and how claims are paid.

Ms Riga says rate increases in global corporate business were about 4% last year, compared with 3.7% for the insurance market globally.

“The momentum remains positive but we would not rely on rate increases continuing indefinitely.”