Farmsure cuts underwriting time and streamlines the broker experience with Twinn

The challenge

Integrating flood and subsidence risk data into Farmsure’s new digital insurance platform

As part of its drive to digitalise, Farmsure embarked on a new digital insurance platform build. “As leaders in our niche, our goal is to give our brokers an exceptional digital experience. As part of that, we wanted a way to integrate accurate flood and subsidence risk data into our new system – so there was a faster and more integrated experience for brokers and our underwriters,” explained Mark Benger, Managing Director of Farmsure.

“Assessing flood and subsidence risk had been time-consuming for our underwriters,” he continued. “To streamline the underwriting experience, we needed to link this essential data into our new platform.”

As part of the digitalisation initiative, Farmsure also wanted access to more detailed flood and subsidence risk data. “Our previous data sources enabled underwriters to assess the risk to an area, but this didn’t always account for the nuances of farmer requirements,” explained Mark. “Farmland might be on a flood plain, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the farm buildings and the farmhouse are at risk of flooding. We needed data that allowed us drill down and make those distinctions, so we could make more informed underwriting decisions.”

The solution

Instant access to granular flood and subsidence risk data

After a competitive tender, Farmsure partnered with Twinn, formerly known under the Ambiental brand. “Twinn immediately understood our ambitions and worked with us to develop a solution,” said Mark. “The set-up process was incredibly straightforward. They provide the exact functionality we need to integrate high-resolution risk data into the insurance platform.”

When brokers input location data into Farmsure’s platform, the flood and subsidence risk is automatically assessed via the Twinn API integration. If it’s low risk based on Farmsure’s criteria, the process continues seamlessly. If risk is flagged, underwriters are automatically notified and it’s easy for them to review the data and decide. A time-consuming manual process is now reduced to a few clicks.

“In addition to the speed, the level of detail at an individual property level is where we’ve really noticed the improvement,” said Mark. “With farming, it’s not just about the flood and subsidence risk to houses (though many old farmhouses lack foundations). You’ll find crops, produce and machinery in barns and other buildings. And soil type is also relevant, too. Twinn enables us to see exactly what the risk is based on a confluence of factors.”

The impact

Informed underwriting decisions – fast

Through its investment in software and data, Farmsure is enhancing the experience for its underwriters and brokers,

What has been the biggest impact?

“Time savings. Twinn has saved our underwriters an enormous amount of time.” Speeding up the underwriting process, perhaps by between 2 and 5 minutes for every case, has allowed underwriters to write more risk. And we also have a far more realistic understanding of risk because the data is so detailed,” he continued.

Farmsure is providing a better broker experience as a result. “The traditional way of presenting farm insurance to insurers has always been sending in a written presentation, then waiting between 2 and 3 weeks for a response to come back,” said Mark. “While many providers now use portals, standard ones are generic and limiting. Essentially, they’re taking a commercial combined package policy and trying to adapt it to support a farm.”

Farmsure have turned this process on its head. “With our platform, brokers input the information into our portal, with flood and subsidence risk data coming in automatically. Brokers get everything back much faster. This blend of traditional underwriting and modern technology has cut out all that time.”

Thanks to its use of digital technology and climate risk data, Farmsure was a finalist in 2 categories at the 2023 Insurance Times Tech and Innovation Awards – Technology Innovation of the Year and Technology Partner of the Year.