U.S. domiciled electronic insurance exchange and specialty managing general agent (MGA), MarketScout, has announced the launch of WildCat, a new MGA facility for insuring wildfire, brush, and earthquake exposures.
In response to increasing losses from the wildfire peril over the last two years, most notably from outbreaks in California, WildCat has been developed to offer additional coverage capacity in the area.
MarketScout notes that according to analysts, the California personal lines market is trending toward a hardening market, with rate increases from 10% to 50% for brush exposed properties.
MarketScout’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Richard Kerr, said: “The brush and wildfire issues in California are similar to the windstorm issues suffered in Florida 12 to 14 years ago. Many insurers are trying to exit the California market. MarketScout has extensive personal lines underwriting expertise that has enabled us to develop new, much needed capacity.”
For homeowners in wildfire and brush areas, renewal rate increases have been tough, and MarketScout states that WildCat provides a viable alternative at competitive pricing. WildCat is available through all Western states, with DIC and Wrap coverage options also available.
Chris Hatt, Executive Vice President (EVP), MarketScout Private Client Solution, said: “We work very hard to generate an underwriting profit for our insurer partners. By utilizing our internal expertise and the brush fire modeling tools provided by HazardHub, we are able to make proper risk selection which will assure underwriters a profitable book of business.”
