Incidentally

Issue

50

– 20

11

also inside >Thailand flooding update 1

USA business integration 2

Environmental SPG launch 3

Netherlands sailing day 3

Operation Sapphire 4

USA Market celebration 4

SMILE launch 5

Global Sports Calendar 2012 5

Young people in loss adjusting 6

In-house Environmental Consultant 6

Global Directory 2011 7

Those you least expect 7

Commercial Risk Division 8

Canadian F3 tornado 9

Typhoon Nesat 9

Response to major natural catastrophes 10

FERMA 2011 12

British Insurance Awards 2011 12

June Nightingale ACII 13

Jon Sargent article 13

Corpore wins Rehab First Award 13

Pink Friday 14

In the press 15

People profile and competitions 16

News services all around the world have carried numerous stories regarding the on-going flood situation in Thailand. The floods began in late July and continue as at the date of printing this story. Many reports claim that these floods are the worst in over 50 years, but the devastation these latest floods have wrought in terms of lives, livelihoods and the economic damage are conceivably the worst in Thailand’s history.

Thailand plays an important role in today’s global commerce, industry and agriculture. It is one of the world’s manufacturing hubs for electronics, auto assembly and textiles and is also the largest producer of rice in the world. Many hundreds of millions of revenue dollars will be lost for companies dependent on factories and supplies located in Thailand. This is because the manufacturing processes elsewhere can't be completed because of the disruption in the supply chain.

While the overall insured loss as yet can't be estimated because of the on-going presence of the flood water, the potential losses to insurers will be enormous.

Above image: The Rojana Industrial Estate is one of the largest in Thailand, employing thousands of locals and housing hundreds of automotive and electronic factories. As of 1 November 2011, this was approximately two metres underwater.

Thailand flooding update

Continued on page 2

To submit an article please contact Kerry Conlon on kconlon@cl-int.com

Group news Group news

2

The business integration of Cunningham Lindsey in the US, GAB Robins and Cunningham Lindsey International in the USA involves two stages:

• Stage 1 – the migration of GAB Robins service operations into the Cunningham Lindsey infrastructure

• Stage 2 – the integration of the three businesses into one Cunningham Lindsey

The two stage approach to the business integration proved to be wise as Gallagher Bassett, which owns the ACIS claims system on which GAB Robins has been operating, commenced running down system support just as we were undertaking the claims data migration. Fortunately we had the flexibility to work around some of the complications this presented and the migration was successfully completed in August 2011.

Recently we commenced work on Stage Two. Project teams have been created, drawing people from across the organization who will implement the plans to combine the three businesses. The integration projects involve nine major areas; Organizational Structure, Service Operations, CAT Operations, Training, Systems, Sales & Marketing, Human Resources, Finance and TPA. Our objective is to have the integration substantially complete by the end of 2011.

By the end of the year our loss adjusting services will also be under the Cunningham Lindsey brand and the GAB Robins brand will be retired. Our ‘high end’ loss adjusting will be provided by the International & Executive Loss Adjusting division of Cunningham Lindsey, AquaTerra and GAB Robins Insurance Appraisals (who alone will maintain the GAB Robins brand).

David RadcliffChief Operating OfficerCunningham Lindsey Group

This was demonstrated by a October 2011 Aon Benfield Report, which summarized the cost of damages to various large industrial estates in Ayuttaya Province, north of Bangkok as:

“In terms of productivity, reports suggested that more than 14,800 industrial and manufacturing plants were damaged by floods in 20 separate provinces. Ayutthaya Province was one of the most heavily impacted areas, where at least 900 out of 2,150 factories were damaged. In Ayutthaya City, all five industrial estates (Rojana, Saha Rattana Nakorn, Hi-Tech, Bang Pa-in and Factoryland) were inundated. At the Rojana Industrial Park, dozens of factories (including those from Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co., Mazda Motor Corp., Nissan Motor Corp., Mitsubishi Corp., Sony Corp., Nikon Corp., Sanyo Semiconductor and Matsushita) were forced to close after floodwaters entered the perimeter. In terms of damages sustained throughout Rojana, the Federation of Thai Industries estimated damages between THB50 to 60 billion (USD1.6 to 1.9 billion). At the nearby Saha Rattana Nakorn Industrial Park, additional damages and losses were estimated at THB25 to 30 billion (USD808 to 970 million). Multiple personal electronic manufacturers (including Toshiba Corp., Hitachi Ltd, Canon, Western Digital, Hutchinson Technology, Microsemi Corp., and ON Semiconductor) were also forced to shutdown production. Western Digital reported that 60 percent of its global computer hard drive production comes from Thailand. Combined economic losses at the five industrial parks alone were listed in excess of THB100 billion (USD3.3 billion).”

Our operations in Thailand have been extremely busy. They have been keeping in contact with insurers and brokers to start the claims process and undertaking numerous presentations. Site inspections have only just commenced at some of the industrial estates where the flood waters have receded. Gareth Sampson, Managing Director of our Thailand office, has been co-ordinating with strategic partners and other Cunningham Lindsey adjusters from our global operations for assistance with assessing these large claims and undertaking everything else that goes with a large scale CAT. We have experienced adjusters attending from Australia, Colombia, Canada, Indonesia, Singapore and the United Kingdom to help Gareth and his team with the numerous business interruption and property damage claims.

Lois CreightonCorporate Affairs ManagerAsia & Middle East

Above image: GAB and Cunningham Lindsey offices are coming together. Long-term GAB employees Warner Grimsley (47 years), Rocky Sharum (36 years) and Vickie Darland (33 years), pack up to move to the Cunningham Lindsey Home Office.

USA business integration

Group news

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Global Environmental Practice Group launched

A special day in the Netherlands

General news

On 22 September 2011, we successfully launched our new Global Environmental Practice Group at a reception in London, attended by many leading market figures from both brokers and insurers of environmental products.

Our Environmental Practice Group Leader, Ruth Saeys, commented: "Cunningham Lindsey is now uniquely positioned to handle any environmental claim throughout the world. Our adjusters have a wealth of environmental experience, understand the local legislations and the nuances of the policy wordings, but above all are able to handle losses quickly and cost- effectively for our clients."

Environmental incidents can produce considerable difficulties and substantial costs for businesses and insurers alike, as well as providing a stark reminder of the fragility of our environment. Our Global Environmental Practice Group made up of engineers, agriculturalists, surveyors, accountants, chartered loss adjusters, arbitrators, legal executives and law graduates; believe the handling of claims arising from pollution incidents needs a comprehensive understanding of the technical issues, a calm, organised approach, skill and sensitivity ensuring that they provide the best solutions to their clients.

With principal teams across Europe, Latin America, Middle East, Africa, Australasia and the United States, supplemented by country experts in over 20 territories we are unchallenged in our ability to meet the adjusting needs in the environmental sector.

Click here to view the Environmental SPG brochure

Kerry ConlonMarketing AssistantUnited Kingdom

Over the last 20 years we have organised a sailing race for our clients working in the construction insurance industry. From many years of experience, we have learnt that the smaller the boat, the happier our clients and staff members are.

Our clients were sailing in 'Valken', small sailing boats, on a lake in the North of the Netherlands. In western Europe the summer has been terrible, but on Friday 23 September the sun was shining!

With over 100 clients present, the chaos at the starting line did not, this year, result in sunken boats, mostly due to the lack of wind, and in some cases actual skills at the helm.

Those that survived the brutal race were dished up a traditional Captain's dinner, certainly a meal that delivers its promises.

Marianne van der VoortPR & Communication ManagerThe Netherlands

Group news Group news

Our Investigation Services team helped secure the convictions of three men involved in a £300,000 tractor ringing scam. The men had been operating a vehicle sales business with an estimated turnover of £1.5m, but had run a profitable sideline changing vehicle registration plates on stolen tractors to conceal their origins. As a result of police enquiries and the subsequent recovery of a tractor, we were instructed by the insurers to investigate.

Working in tandem with the police and insurers, we began analysing over 50 claims. We carried out database and intelligence searches before all the data was imported into our i2 intelligence database to produce a report that illustrated the connections between all claims and claimants. During this time, Lancashire Police interviewed all parties that were linked to the recovered tractor.

As investigations intensified and statements from witnesses and policyholders were completed, the three men at the heart of the organised crime ring were identified and the police moved in. Following a raid and the discovery of more stolen items the owner of the company and two further employees were arrested and charged.

The company owner was convicted of two counts of handling stolen goods, two counts of fraud and making a false statement. He was jailed for 35 months. One employee pleaded guilty to two counts of handling stolen goods and making a false statement and was jailed for 19 months. The second employee admitted handling stolen goods and was given a suspended eight months jail sentence and ordered to do 200 hours of unpaid work.

In sentencing, Judge Norman Wright said the ringleader who was running a legitimate vehicle sales business, but handling stolen tractors as a “profitable sideline.”

Sarah Johnston, prosecuting, told the court that a number of tractors and trailers were stolen from various places in England. She said: “These defendants obtained some of the stolen items and some number plates of the vehicles were changed.

Other steps were taken to alter their appearance and false representations made to the DVLA about the ownership of the vehicles.”

Operation Sapphire – from sales to jails

Detective Sergeant Simon Ingham from Lancashire Police added: “These sentences reflect the seriousness of the crime. Without the handler there is no theft and this type of crime seriously undermines the economy and causes misery and distress to farmers.”

This investigation is an excellent example of the collaborative approach that’s needed when it comes to organised fraud.

This case was shortlisted for the ‘Investigation Team of the Year’ at this year’s Post Magazine Insurance Fraud Awards, submitted as a joint entry with the insurers.

Lisa HyndInvestigation ServicesUnited Kingdom

Following the joining together of three teams in the United States: Cunningham Lindsey International, GAB Robins Executive Loss Adjusting and AquaTerra; the new division, Cunningham Lindsey International & Executive Loss Adjusting, held a drinks reception to formally introduce the new division to the London market.

This team provides clients with services across the full spectrum of claims including industrial, casualty, commercial, energy and personal property.

The event, held at Balls Brothers opposite the Lloyd's building, had an impressive turn-out with around 100 contacts from the market, 30 experts from the International & Executive Loss Adjusting team, including Jim Girard – President and Chief Executive Officer Cunningham Lindsey US – and a number of our London team in attendance. Everyone agreed that the introduction of our new combined division to the London market proved to be invaluable.

Kerry ConlonMarketing AssistantUnited Kingdom

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USA Market Celebration

General news

Group news

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On Monday, 3 October, SMILE 3 launched in Cardiff and Glasgow Service Centres!

While the message delivering great customer service remains, this time around our key themes are: • Quicker• Better• Right first time

In Cardiff, each team has set activities and goals which align with these themes. As milestones are reached, every team has the opportunity to earn ‘Olympic’ style medals:• Gold – Exceeded goal• Silver – Goal achieved• Bronze – Improvement against starting benchmark

achievedAs the challenge unfolds, some words of thanks to

Donna Harries for arranging the launch celebrations. A huge thank you is also owed to both Dean Parker and Ryan Jarman for undertaking a number of staff briefings. And, leading by example (and as a flavour of some of the activities underway) both Ryan and Dean have their own goals to achieve also – these cover areas such as:• Quicker – Reducing elapsed days• Better – Improving call closure levels• Right First Time – Improved recording of certain data

In Glasgow, the launch of the next phase of SMILE was celebrated by staff being greeted by an array of the new posters, yellow balloons (albeit they didn't display the smiley face) and goodie bags! Over the course of the morning Jane Lewis held five presentations to brief all members of staff and what we will be looking to achieve under the SMILE banner, how this will fit with our other initiatives such as the Cunningham Lindsey League and how each area within the service centre will be measured.

The 2012 Cunningham Lindsey calendar has now been distributed to clients and staff all around the world to be placed on their desks for the next 12 months.

Our theme this year is ‘Global Sports’ emphasising that major sports operates on a global playing field, yet they are still inspired locally, thriving on the skill and innovation found in every country. Our 2012 calendar celebrates this special relationship by highlighting how the local culture of a country has originated a sport or is the reason they excel at it.

We believe in going the extra mile on behalf of our clients, which is probably why we are one of the largest global loss adjusting and claims management companies. But like the sports in our calendar, we have achieved this because our expert account handling benefits from local knowledge.

We do hope that you and your clients enjoy our calendars.

Kerry ConlonMarketing AssistantUnited Kingdom

SMILE Launch

General news

Above: Groupama Team L-R Adam Worthington, Natasha Walsh, Benjamin Jones, Lucy Cowell and Liz Cox

Above: Dean Parker and Ryan Jarman holding the briefing sessions in Cardiff.

Many thanks to everyone for entering into the spirit of the day and particularly to those who volunteered to decorate the office on the evening before the launch.

Steve WhetterService Centre DirectorUnited Kingdom

2012 Global Calendar

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Above: Attendees of the meeting in the Ajax Stadium

General news General news

Getting young people interested in loss adjusting is possible

The benefits of having an in-house Environmental Consultant

In the Netherlands we started a campaign for our traineeships with a website www.deleukstebaanvannederland.nl roughly translated as "the best job in the Netherlands". After interviewing a lot of our adjusters and asking them about the likes and dislikes of their job, we translated their view of the job in the website. This gave a tremendous boost in the way our own people look at their role as well as giving a boost to the willingness of co-operation in recruitment for our company. Furthermore we made sure that candidates were able to ‘live a day in the life of an adjuster’ and gave great attention to generate free publicity in the media, which is read by the target population. In the last year we exceeded expectations and fulfilled all the vacancies.

Almost two years ago Rosemarijn Peters and Sjaak Schouteren started Young Insurance. A network group for people in the insurance industry. It's goal is to provide young professionals (up to 35 years) an opportunity to meet people of their own age.

Every two months we organize an event where we meet 60-80 of our insurance colleagues. This includes a 90 minute presentation from an insurance related speaker and then it's off for drinks!

Although we have a website www.younginsurance.nl everything is being done via Linkedin. We now have a network of almost 900 young professionals and we are also being asked to give our view on recruitment and educational issues.

For Cunningham Lindsey this network provides a lot of opportunities to find new business and keep close contact to the managing directors of the future.

Sjaak SchouterenBusiness Development ManagerThe Netherlands

An 'escape of oil' claim was notified and allocated to a licensed adjuster from our Environmental Solutions Team. The claim concerned a leak of fuel oil (kerosene) from a 1,150 litre capacity steel oil tank that served the central heating boiler in this domestic property. Arrangements were also made for an external Environmental Consultant, from our panel of approved suppliers, to attend. They would conduct a walkover and initial site investigation for the agreed fixed fee.

The site investigation resulted in a schedule of work being prepared for conducting excavations adjacent to the property and to remove the path. An area of heavily impacted soil and path adjacent to the building were excavated. It was suggested that removal of supporting brickwork was needed and this required underpinning works, this would involve the services of a structural engineer. We were satisfied that an insured peril had operated and that there was potential and actual damage to the buildings, as defined.

John Gillard, our in-house Environmental Consultant reviewed the scope of works and discussed this with the consultant. His recommendation, which was adopted by the consultant, was to implement a different and less intrusive method of remediation. He proposed backfilling the excavation and monitoring the vapour levels that remained. Chemical treatment was also an option to promote the natural break down of the kerosene. The monitoring of the vapour levels ensured that the occupants of the house weren't at risk.

The revised works were agreed and completed. This reduced an initial estimate of £46,140 (including VAT) to £27,450, a saving to insurers of £18,690, or just over 40%. John’s input on these cases has proved invaluable both in relation to controlling indemnity spend, but also questioning the extent of costs claimed in any subrogated recovery action.

Graham HawkinsEnvironmental ServicesUnited Kingdom

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Those you least expect

Our complex loss specialist got more than he bargained for when considering a claim from a building contractor who was claiming for damage caused to three large rainwater attenuation tanks belonging to the local water company.

The water tanks were installed under the car park area of a single storey office building with mezzanine storage. The surface water would drain into the first tank, which would then balance the total volume between nine other tanks before it passed to the drainage system.

The policyholder was still on-site making an installation when the ground above tank nine suddenly collapsed. Whilst excavating the collapse, tanks seven and eight were also damaged. The claim eventually submitted was for a total sum of £222,500.

Although the liability and contractual issues were enough to keep our specialist busy, the quantum side immediately raised our specialist’s suspicions that the claim might be exaggerated. This involved a minor invoice that would turn out to be an important aspect to the entire investigation.

The invoice was supposedly from the local water company for inspection costs amounting to £3,500. Our specialist thought this was strange as these costs would usually be in the region of £100 – £400.

Having discussed the matter with the sender who later supplied a statement, our suspicions proved correct. We scrutinised the many other invoices and applications for payment and some of these showed blurred letter headings with clearly typed sections beneath.

We managed to prove that at least six of the invoices had been forged in respect of work or services, which were either exaggerated or had not been carried out at all.

The supplier of the rainwater attenuation tanks confirmed that the invoice they had issued (with the same reference) was for two tanks costing £18,600 and not three tanks costing £28,700 as had been presented.

In view of the seriousness of the fraud, our client, in consultation with counsel decided to terminate cover from the date of the initial incident.

In addition counsel advised that our client should request payment of claims settled for the total period of cover totalling £83,400 along with outstanding employers' liability claims currently reserved at £120,000 plus investigation costs incurred in the region of £27,000. The premiums paid over the same period were also forfeited by the contractor.

The termination letter also reminded the contractor that they would be obliged to disclose that fraud had prompted the removal of cover when seeking alternative cover from other insurers.

What was surprising in this case is that we weren't dealing with a small contractor, but a very large construction and property development company. Sometimes it is the least obvious people that we deal with that will engage in fraudulent activity. We always make sure we are alert to recognising potential fraud indicators.

Sharon HurstFraud Manager Liability ServicesUnited Kingdom

General news

The 2011 Global Directory has been printed.If you require any copies then please contact me on

KConlon@cl-int.com or +44 20 7816 1890 and I will arrange to have your requested amount sent out to you.

Please click here to view the web version of the Global Directory.

Kerry ConlonMarketing AssistantUnited Kingdom

Global Directory 2011

Group news Group news

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Canada's Commercial Risk division ramps up

On October 18, 19 and 20, the Canadian Commercial Risk Division (CRD) held their annual meeting in Mississauga, ON. Hosting the meeting were Vice President, National Operations, Mike Morris and Assistant Vice President, Specialty Services – CRD, Mike Alwyn. In attendance were Executive General Adjusters (EGAs) and the newly appointed Senior General Adjusters (SGAs) and General Adjusters (GAs) from across Canada.

“Our annual meeting is always an important time for members of the unit to get together with each other to regroup and refocus our efforts on enhancing our technical skills and our service offerings to the industry,” said Mike Morris. “This year’s meeting was no exception.”

During the three days, attendees participated in seminars and workshops and the EGAs put together a CRD business and marketing plan for 2012. The group also had a chance to network with each other as well as with a large number of CRD clients during an evening ‘Meet and Greet’ event. Finally the team learned of the CRD expansion plans and were introduced to the two new National Directors. “We believe there is opportunity to capture a greater portion of the large loss claims adjusting business in Canada,” said Alwyn. “To accomplish this, we are growing our number of qualified adjusters and expanding our areas of coverage to meet the demands of our clients. We have formally divided our unit into two distinct lines of business: property and liability. Leading these two divisions are Andrew Hernandez from Vancouver, BC who has been appointed National Director, Property and Doug Andrews from Winnipeg, MB who is our National Director, Liability. Both Andrew and Doug report directly to myself.”

An integral part of the expansion plans included the announcement of a new mentoring program. “Due to a limited number of experienced CRD EGA level adjusters in the marketplace, we realized that we needed to recruit and train our own Cunningham Lindsey adjusters who show the desire and potential to be EGAs,” said Morris. “A mentorship plan was set in place to create new SGAs and GAs who would be trained to become our future EGAs.”

SGA and GA candidates were identified by operations management and sent applications to apply to the Commercial Risk Division. After a review process the new CRD team was unveiled to include 15 EGAs, four SGAs, and four GAs. “The SGAs and GAs are partnered with an EGA that will mentor the junior adjuster for a two year term, which is renewable,” said Alwyn. “The mentor relationship between an EGA and their SGA or GA could last for many years, or until the GA or SGA has met the terms and gained the experience needed to be promoted to the next level.”

General news

With the creation of the SGA and GA positions and the mentoring program, the CRD unit now provides expanded coverage across every region and is poised for continued growth and expansion. “We are already well-known for our expertise on the property side, as evident by our present book of business,” said Alwyn. “We deal with sizeable mining losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars, and other large losses involving hospitals, condominiums, factories, distribution facilities and environmental issues to name a few. We will continue to pursue our property business but will now also focus on attracting commercial liability business and we expect to see rapid growth as a result of this focus and our newly expanded team.”

For Mike and his team, it’s time to spread the word and let the marketplace know of our new capabilities. “We want to send the message that we have many more qualified adjusters ready and able to handle both property and liability losses all across Canada,” concluded Alwyn. “Cunningham Lindsey is the only independent adjusters that have such a strong CRD network both nationally and internationally. We are committed to growing this network and improving our market position.”

Watch for more communications coming from the CRD unit as their plans and progress continues.

Michael J. AlwynAVP - Specialty Services/Commercial Risk DivisionCanada

Above: Front Row (L-R): Jordan Legg (GA), Nick Tucci (EGA), Jeff Shurtleff (EGA), Mike Alwyn (EGA), Bob McNair (EGA). Second Row (L-R): Jim Dowie (EGA), Andrew Hernandez (EGA), Guy Fournier (SGA), Vince Umbrio (EGA). Third Row (L-R): Troy Skinner (SGA), Richard Dumont (SGA), Rick Bahen (EGA), Michael Jobson (EGA), Andre Rossier (GA), Dale Reid (EGA), Fop Riethoff (EGA). Back Row (L-R): Doug Andrews (EGA) Jed Muir (GA) James Jack (GA), Steve Hansen (SGA). Missing from photo: Roch Pelletier (EGA), Serge Picard (EGA), Lee Powell (EGA).

Group news

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Typhoon Nesat batters Philippines

Small Canadian town devastated by F3 tornado

Catastrophe news

Our experienced CAT team flew out to the Philippines following a powerful typhoon that battered the Philippines causing major flooding in the capital Manila and throughout the main island, Luzon.

The ground floor of one of Manila's hospitals, Ospital ng Maynila was flooded and the US Embassy and central bank and finance department also suffered flood damage. The Sofitel Hotel at the Cultural Centre Complex was also flooded and guests evacuated. Flooding also occurred at The Metropolitan Museum, with some valuable art works being destroyed.

Luzon is home to over half the Philippine population so Typhoon Nesat affected a lot of people and livelihoods.

As ever our team of adjusters throughout our operations in Asia were on hand to handle losses as they were reported.

Lois CreightonCorporate Affairs ManagerMiddle East & Asia

The Canadian Catastrophe (CAT) response team was deployed to Goderich, Ontario after the small town was devastated by a tornado on Sunday, August 21, 2011. Adjusters were on-site helping within hours of the disaster and Cunningham Lindsey also attended the scene on behalf of the Ontario Provincial government to provide disaster assessment expertise.

The picturesque town on Lake Huron was hit with an F3 tornado that saw wind speeds of 280km an hour and resulted in one death and injured nearly 40 people. There was extensive damage to a large percentage of businesses in the downtown square and residential claims are still being reported as homeowners realize they have damage.

Due to safety issues, commercial claims in the downtown core are moving slowly. Many buildings have crumbled into the street and some will require demolition. Asbestos tests must be completed to confirm buildings have not been exposed to asbestos particulate. Since many of the old core buildings are designated as Cultural Heritage Properties, the team is assessing the damage and hope to restore the buildings as per original if possible. If the damage to an exterior wall is too severe to restore to original, then engineered drawings will be submitted to the Building Official for approval.

The devastation is massive and rebuilding will be a long process. However, everyone we are dealing with is being positive as we try to make progress. The employees at the Goderich Town Hall are to be commended for their organization skills in this unfortunate event and the police presence has put a lot of business owners at ease.

Brad ArnoldStratford, Ontario, Branch ManagerCanada

Group news Group news

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Trade press article – A loss adjuster's response to major natural catastrophes – Insurance Day. 12 September 2011

Catastrophe news

So far in 2011, we have seen a record number of tornados, devastating earthquakes, unprecedented flooding, unsettling volcanic eruptions, and a tsunami in Japan that none of us will forget. But when the rain stops, the waves subside and the ground stops shaking, what role does a loss adjuster really have? How do they begin to prepare and cope with disasters on this scale?CAT planning

A robust disaster plan is important to any business, but for a loss adjusting organisation, it’s an integral part of the work that they do. Tried and tested disaster plans, honed from the lessons learned from many previous responses, are rolled out to get them and their clients through the tough times ahead.

Loss adjusters have to be in a position to assemble an immediate and structured response to catastrophes of any type or scale, so being able to act fast, mobilise a CAT team, and keep a calm head is crucial.

An adjuster needs this planning. To a certain extent, we can predict some events, such as a flood or a hurricane, or at least some advance warning is possible. Others, such as earthquakes, invariably are not so easy to foresee. A robust cat plan needs to cater for each different scenario.The challenges

Every catastrophe presents different issues. On March 11 2011, Japan's most powerful earthquake since records began struck the north-east coast, triggering a massive tsunami.

Infrastructure damage, water and electricity shortages severely hampered the recovery effort. Transportation was an initial problem. Trains didn’t run, the Sandai Airport was closed and petrol was scarce in the north east of Honshu. For about a month after the earthquake, Sendai could only be accessed by bus, which was a twelve hour return journey.

There was also denial of access issues, due to radiation affecting the Fukushima zone. Despite this, loss adjusters managed to access the areas within a few days and quickly learnt that companies with damaged production plants, especially those in the global electronic and car production areas seem to have been most affected. This loss of production and supply shortages will have an ongoing effect on the Japanese and wider global economy. Claims emerged for Contingent Business Interruption (CBI) as supply chains were disrupted, which impacted on many companies’ ability to continue to produce goods for sale elsewhere. To put this in perspective Japan makes 40% of global electronic components, 19% of semiconductors, and 20% of all technology products.

Volume of claimsOn 4 September 2010 a 7.1 magnitude earthquake

hit 40km west of Christchurch. The New Zealand Treasury estimated that the September event losses would total NZ$4 billion. At the time the estimated losses made this the fifth most costly earthquake event for insurers. Then on the 22 February 2011 a 6.3 magnitude quake hit the same region.

Following the September earthquake, Cunningham Lindsey New Zealand received over 5,600 claims – 75% were commercial. But this doesn’t reflect the scale of the task. From the September event alone, this office received claims from between 12,000 – 15,000 locations of damage, particularly if you count business interruption losses separately. The reserves on the September claims total around NZ$1 billion – it’s worth noting here that lessons learnt from previous large scale events show that you shouldn’t be too quick to set reserves.

The February aftershock brought in another 7,500 claims – 95% were commercial. It’s estimated that our office in Christchurch has had around 40,000 locations of damage arising from both events and the current total amounts to in excess of NZ$5 billion.

Insurers’ in-house teams, together with their preferred building contractors were allocated the majority of domestic claims. Insurers made the strategic decision to reserve loss adjusting capacity for commercial losses. Scaling up

In all large catastrophe events claims handling operations will need to scale up their resources. Global organisations are able to call in specialists from offices in other parts of the world and this is a huge help, particularly when specific professional skills are in short supply locally.

Group news

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Catastrophe news

Cunningham Lindsey in New Zealand initially recruited staff from Australia, South Africa, Abu Dhabi and Canada, but as their colleagues from Australia were fully engaged in their own flood response, adjusters were also pulled in from the USA, the UK and other offices around the world. There is obviously a clear balancing act between getting enough people from the network in the right place, with the right expertise.Appreciating the human impact

These events effects people in different ways – it can bring out the best and the worst in human reactions. An insurance policy doesn’t state that your loss will be handled subject to workload on the day and so customers have a right to expect their claim to be treated with equal urgency. However, when the scale of the event challenges even the most efficient CAT plan, you know you are going to have to manage everyone’s expectations.

Loss adjusters are used to dealing with people who are traumatised and providing comfort, advice and lending support is an important part of the role. In the main, communities are stoic. They accept that the situation is extraordinary and pull together to find temporary solutions that will help improve their situation.

In Japan, many families are still in hotels awaiting the construction of new housing and other essential infrastructure facilities, such as schools and hospitals. Support, in the form of voluntary financial aid, has reached more than US$4 billion.

According to some of the international adjusters helping out in New Zealand, the people of Christchurch have been truly wonderful. They are a population under strain and their honesty and resilience has been an inspiration to those who are working tirelessly to make their lives a little easier, and bring their claims to a close.

From a re-insurer’s perspective, loss adjusters generally are aware that every settlement reached in the stressful conditions of a post-catastrophe location, however modest, will contribute to the overall effect of such an event on the world’s insurance markets. Each case may only be a line item on a bordereaux by the time it reaches the world’s great re-insurance powerhouses, but each line item tells a story in which the value of our insurance products are truly measured

At the time of writing, Hurricane Irene took a last minute eastward turn and the US landfall was far less than expected. Downgraded to a tropical storm, it raged its way up the east coast, leaving thousands of storm and flood damaged properties in its wake. It is unclear yet how much damage the first hurricane of the season will cause. What is clear is that loss adjusters across the globe will be preparing response plans around the ever changing catastrophe situations on the ground there.

Ben PriceExecutive DirectorUnited Kingdom

Group news Group news

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People newsEvents news

Cunningham Lindsey has once again exhibited at the FERMA conference held in Stockholm, Sweden. As one of the largest loss adjusters within Europe, we had 16 representatives from our European network supporting this event, which had been specifically designed by risk managers. Click here to view our directory.

Besides attending the traditional top level workshops and sessions; the main target of our presence at the forum was to network with existing clients and to develop relationships with potential clients, intermediaries, insurers and reinsurers.

To attract visitors to our booth we held a ‘Top Gear’ style competition, where visitors were asked to become a star in our reasonably priced Cunningham Lindsey branded car, by using an iPad to drive around a race track. We had many visitors take part in this competition; Alan Scott from RSA was the fastest driver and was the proud winner of our iPad2.

The event has proved to be a great success, with many new contacts made and old renewed.

Ben PriceExecutive DirectorUnited Kingdom

Cunningham Lindsey exhibits at FERMA 2011

Above: (L-R) Stephen Raine (UK), Bob Vermeiren (Belgium), Ben Price (UK), Markus Montigny (Germany), Christophe Fournial (France), Tamás Péterdi (Hungary) and Alessandro Lercari (Italy).

British Insurance Awards 2011

The 17th annual British Insurance Awards ceremony took place at the Royal Albert Hall, hosted by comedian and talk show host, Jonathan Ross.

Debbie Daley, our Operations Manager in our Glasgow Service Centre, was a finalist nominated for the Young Achiever of the Year accolade. We caught up with her to find out what it takes to be a finalist.

What is an average day like in your job?There is no average day in my job, that's what I like most about it, I work across all clients, products and projects within the Glasgow Service Centre, I am faced with new challenges everyday, no two days are the same.

What is the most satisfying thing about your job and how are you motivated?The most satisfying thing about my job is delivering results, particularly in times of surge when our resource is stretched and our goals are still achieved by working as a team and everyone pulling together, it is satisfying to know that everyone works hard and is committed to achieving the same goals. The positive client and internal feedback on the performance of our teams is a great motivator.

How did you feel when you found out you were nominated?It was an honour to be nominated for this award and to make the short-list was a great achievement. It demonstrates what a great team I have, the achievements that resulted in my nomination would not have been possible without the hard work and dedication from everyone within the Service Centre.

On the night, when your name was being read out with the other finalists, what thoughts were going through your mind?Seeing the stiff competition I was up against for this award I felt privileged to be nominated. I felt proud of my accomplishments in my career so far.

And lastly how long did it take you to prepare for the night? It felt as though I was preparing for weeks, or perhaps it was just an excuse to go shopping to find the right dress on numerous occasions! On the day I travelled down from Glasgow, it took most of the day to get ready after that – hair appointment, nails and make up and then on to the Royal Albert Hall!

Beverley KaradimitriadisDesign and Marketing ExecutiveUnited Kingdom

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People news

June Nightingale, Cunningham Lindsey Construction Senior Adjuster, has just become ACII qualified. Congratulations June!

Amongst her subjects (recently taken) was an exam on the London Market .

Rupert TravisExecutive Director ConstructionUnited Kingdom

Construction Adjuster, Jon Sargent, has written an article for a broker’s magazine on the subject of Design and Build Contractors and Professional Indemnity Insurance . Click here for the link to the full article.

As you will see it raises the issue of the extent to which the PI policy will respond to the contractor’s modified responsibilities, under contract, to deliver something which is fit for purpose, over and above his normal responsibility to exercise reasonable skill and care.

Rupert TravisExecutive Director ConstructionUnited Kingdom

June Nightingale new qualification

Corpore win at the Rehabilitation First Awards 2011

We are delighted to announce that Cath Townley, Case Manager with Corpore, has won the Case Manager of the Year Award at the Rehabilitation First Awards.

The Rehabilitation First Awards celebrated its tenth year and was attended by the majority of insurers, rehabilitation companies and solicitors who work in the rehabilitation industry. The awards are the main recognition of success in this industry.

On announcing Cath as winner of the 2011 Case Manager of the Year Award, Lynn Rouse, editor of Post Magazine and chair of the judging panel, said: “Put simply, the case study chosen to illustrate this individual’s depth of experience, unquestionable skills, commitment to the highest standards of care and their genuine ability to utterly transform the lives of those she works with was exceptional.”

This is the second year running that a Corpore employee has been successful, with Cath following in the footsteps of Elessa Clymer.

Corpore are committed to ensuring their case managers provide a great service to all stakeholders and they invest in their continued professional development.

Wayne HerbertCustomer Development DirectorUnited Kingdom

Design & Build Contractors and Professional indemnity Insurance

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Charity news

Pink Friday in aid of Breast Cancer CareFriday, 28 October, was PINK FRIDAY in aid of Breast Cancer Care at our Cardiff Office. Teams and individuals were encouraged to wear something pink to work to join in the fun. All money raised on the day went towards Breast Cancer care. Prizes were awarded for the best dressed individual and best team.Now to the prizes…

Congratulations to Craig Marshall, who won the ‘Best Dressed’ prize this year!

The best dressed team award goes to Reception again for the second time running, this all thanks to Derek's hard work and effort – thank you Derek, see picture below.

Above: Craig Marshall - who won "Best Dressed"

Above: Some of the donated goodies on sale that day

Below: The Pinkest girl!! – Raquel Griffiths

Susan AddamsSecretarial SupportUnited Kingdom

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In the press

In the press31 October 2011 – Post Magazine – Rina to reach Mexico in 36 hoursHurricane Rina is expected to hit popular tourist destination Mexico in the next 36 hours. Beachfronts in Cancun and Cozumel have been evacuated in preparation for Rina's arrival. Cunningham Lindsey Mexico has despatched senior loss adjuster Albino Madrigal to Cancun.

27 October 2011 – Post Magazine – Carpet warehouse boss jailed over fireCunningham Lindsey’s major loss investigator Phil Scales worked with accountants, the Fire Brigade and Police arson experts to show that the £330,000 fire, which also caused extensive damage to three neighbouring business premises was started deliberately because the business was going under.

20 October 2011 – Insurance Journal – Cunningham Lindsey Names 3 to Premier Loss Adjusting DivisionDallas based Cunningham Lindsey has promoted Chuck Stoll, Joe Christie and Lynn Summers to its International & Executive Loss Adjusting division. This division offers premier loss adjusting expertise in every major industry in the US.

13 October 2011 – Post Magazine – A loss adjusters viewpointCunningham Lindsey's operations director for the Middle East, Hugh Kennaway, responds to some questions on the claims challenges emerging from the Arab Spring.

15 September 2011 – Insurance Day – Industry has responsibility to engage the youngDavid Cresswell, Cunningham Lindsey, Property adjuster comments: "The loss adjusting profession is extremely interesting, but I don't think it's perceived that way. There is a tremendous variety in the work that we handle within a range of different lines. On a daily basis, you are working with people from all walks of Iife, some in a real state of crisis, and they are depending on you to provide help when it's most needed. Perhaps more could be done to promote the real values of the profession in schools and universities or perhaps through social media reaching a younger audience at a time when they are making career choices."

12 September 2011 – Insurance Day – Responding with care is part of loss adjuster's role after disasterFollowing a record number of natural catastrophes so far in 2011. Ben Price of Cunningham Lindsey International provides a professional perspective on how loss adjusters cope with incidents on this scale. 8 September 2011 – Post Magazine – Cunningham Lindsey New Zealand CEO: clear up could take “years”Speaking to Post from Christchurch, New Zealand, Martyn Norrie, chief executive of loss adjuster Cunningham Lindsey’s New Zealand operation, said the operation to restore the city to normality could take “years”.

4 September 2011 – Independent on Sunday – Insurers and homeowners beware: the US hurricane season ain’t over yetBen Price, who holds the rather exciting title of executive director for disaster co-ordination at CunninghamLindsey loss adjustors, tells me that hurricanes “actively feel out land and try to avoid it”.

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People profile and competitions

People profileStephen FosterTechnical Adviser Cunningham Lindsey Indonesia

Where did you grow up?I was born in Whitstable, Kent. This is an old fashioned seaside town in South East England that is famous for Whitstable Oysters.

How do you relax/what are your hobbies?I relax at home with my wife Kate and two children; Jake aged 14 and Emily 13. I enjoy playing golf to a poor standard and tennis. I am also a keen jogger and go mountain biking if I find the time.

How long have you been with the company?I only started 1 August 2011 so I'm still a new boy.

How did you get into adjusting?I joined Richards Hogg Lindley in London in 1993 to develop their cargo surveying/adjusting business. I then moved to Asia in 1996 and been involved in adjusting ever since.

Describe your typical working dayNo day working in Indonesia is typical and you never know what new instruction you will receive or where you maybe travelling next.

What is your most over-used phrase?“Quiet night tonight then” a good friend alleges I use this a lot before we go out for a beer in the evening!

If you could correspond with anyone in history, who would it be and why?Winston Churchill as I’ve always been interested in the Second World War and it would be great to have some inside knowledge.

What’s the single most important piece of advice anyone has every give you?Try to avoid completing personal profiles!

What three words best describe you?Conscientious, Affable, Irreverent – I took some advice on this one.

What do you like best about your job?The salary oh and the job is very varied, I enjoy working and living in Indonesia, the people are great to deal with, and on the marine side you get to deal with all types of major casualties and even piracy investigations.

BubbletalkThe winner of the last Bubbletalk competition is Ian Jones from Birstall, UK office with his caption, “As they looked on smirking, nobody had the heart to tell him

that the engine wasn’t under the bonnet!" Well done, a Cunningham Lindsey gift is on its way to you.

For your chance to win a Cunningham Lindsey prize all you have to do is correctly guess where in the world the picture above was taken. Entries to Kerry Conlon by emailing KConlon@cl-int.com

As no-one correctly guessed the location of the last "where in the world competition" the prize goes to Gareth Sampson in Thailand for supplying the photograph of a city called Tuy Hoa in Phu Yen Province in Vietnam.

Where in the world?

Write a suitable caption for this new photograph and you could win a Cunningham Lindsey prize.