PartnerRe/Kettle back Amwins’ excess wildfire solution

Amwins Access, a binding and brokerage platform for small P&C and personal lines accounts, has launched a new excess wildfire product with the support of Bermudian reinsurers.

The product has been developed with capacity from PartnerRe Insurance Solutions Bermuda while Kettle will provide key data analysis, modeling and pricing, matching markets with appetite.

It is designed to complement a self-insured retention plan or the California FAIR (or a similar) plan. Over the past decade, California has experienced a series of devastating wildfire losses that have particularly impacted high-value residential properties, creating a perfect storm of vulnerability.

“Risk placements in wildfire and other CAT-exposed areas remain challenging, with rates and deductibles continuing to climb,” said Kris Zebratski, senior vice president at Amwins Access. “The situation not only presents capacity challenges, but also adds complexity to the coverage placement process, leaving policyholders exposed to significant losses.”

“Within this dynamic market, we’re excited to join with PartnerRe Insurance Solutions Bermuda and Kettle to provide our market partners with profitable results and unparalleled distribution, while also acting as problem solvers for our retail agents, creating innovative products tailored to their unique needs.”

Amwins’ excess wildfire product is available in California only and to Amwins appointed retail partners exclusively. This single-peril product is specific to wildfire loss, providing up to $7 million excess wildfire coverage for residential dwellings with replacement costs of up to $20 million. The policy is designed to work with a Homeowners / Dwelling Property (HO/DP) policy that has a minimum $3 million fire or wildfire sublimit, and if there is no underlying wildfire coverage, the Self Insured Retention (SIR) is a minimum $3 million.

“With the launch of the Excess Wildfire Product, Kettle is proud to expand our partnership with Amwins and PartnerRe Insurance Solutions Bermuda to provide a meaningful solution for homeowners in an extremely difficult environment,” said Amit Shah, president of Kettle. “Kettle's proven modeling technology and analytics give a crucial underwriting edge in a time when catastrophic losses are increasing in both severity and frequency.”

Joel Livingston, head of Insurance Programs at PartnerRe, added: “Wildfires in California remain challenging – most carriers either will not entertain a risk with the exposure, or they’ll exclude the peril entirely. Thanks to the CatFocus California Wildfire catastrophe model developed by our research team, we are able to further validate Kettle’s modeling approach and provide a reliable benchmark to price this risk. By combining PartnerRe’s know-how with the expertise of Amwins and the capabilities of Kettle, our tri-party effort is poised to be a true game-changer.”