Property intelligence technologies have become a critical element of the
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The property intelligence used in insurers' catastrophe and risk models at issue in California and throughout the U.S. can come from
"You can see virtually everything on the property," he said. "You can get detailed information about the slope, and risks that are close to the property or alleged risks that are close to the property."
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Property intelligence is often evaluated using
The basics of property intelligence for wildfire risk include data points such as the distance between a property and brush or overhanging trees, and where the "wildlife-urban interface actually starts compared to your property line," said Dan Dick, executive managing director and global head of property analytics at Aon, a consulting firm that specializes in risk mitigation products.
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CDI has allowed some insurers to set wildfire hazard scores for underwriting, according to Dick. These scores, produced in part with AI and captured imagery of properties, are shared with homeowners and insureds.
"It's a way that an underwriter can get their hands on information that might not otherwise be available or might not be readily available through even a property application," he said.
Property intelligence data and evaluations for underwriting coverage for wildfire damage — and related technological advances — could be used to mitigate damage before it occurs, he added. In California, the federal and state governments may be the first to look at this application to mitigate wildfire damage, because they both have significant land holdings of their own in the state, Dick believes.
Dalwin raised the "black box" issue. Insurers should keep in mind that AI systems cannot be used just as "some sort of weird ether that all your data is getting thrown into, and you can't explain why decisions are being made," she said. "There's going to be some sort of auditability and