Descartes Underwriting, a leading specialist in parametric insurance, has announced the appointment of Ola Jacob. His 11-year background in London Market distribution spans from UK Liability and Product Recall at Gallagher, to International Terrorism and Onshore Energy at Alesco. Most recently, Ola has been making waves launching FloodFlash’s distribution; he is also currently a Lloyds Charities Trustee and Innovative Risk Labs Advisory Board Member. Ola looks forward to continuing the growth of Parametric worldwide through the London Market at Descartes as the new UK & Ireland Business Development Director.
As a specialist parametric insurance company, Descartes has established itself as a global leader in the industry, amassing a dedicated team of over 160 professionals and an impressive capacity of up to $200 million per contract. Their expertise lies in underwriting a full suite of products that cover all-natural catastrophe perils, including but not limited to wildfires, hurricanes/cyclones, and earthquake risks.
What sets Descartes apart is its commitment to innovation, with 100+ PhDs, underwriting experts, and data scientists. The company has established an internal incubator focused on parametric research and development, which is constantly working to create and launch new products. Among these are parametric offerings like Dynamic Frost, Wave Height, and several others that are currently in development and not ready for public disclosure.
Parametric insurance has come a long way since its inception, evolving from simply addressing the protection gap by offering deductible infills or carve-outs. Today, brokers are integrating parametric solutions into their customers’ existing indemnity programs, creating hybrid policies that offer flexible risk management options and access to Non-Damage Business Interruption coverage. This approach not only empowers customers but also enables brokers and underwriters to provide more competitive packages, thanks to reduced catastrophe exposure and better loss management/recovery.
Ola, an advocate for the untapped potential of parametric Reinsurance and Captives, firmly believes that this is the next frontier for growth in the insurance industry and across the market, we’re already witnessing a significant increase in deals of this nature. Despite the challenges faced by the reinsurance market in covering natural catastrophe risks, the simplicity and effectiveness of parametric triggers have made them attractive to insurers.
Parametric insurance represents the missing piece of the puzzle for the industry, offering transformative potential. If we work collaboratively as a market we have the opportunity to reshape the reputation of insurance as a whole.
