Airmic 2012: Reputation number 1 risk for UK risk managers

Reputation has jumped back to the top of risk managers’ serious concerns, with nearly half (47%) of Airmic members surveyed claiming this was the exposure that kept them awake at night.

In Airmic’s annual member survey, reputation risks was number one with non-damage Business Interruption (37%), supply chains (35%) and the loss or theft of personal data (34%) were also high on their list of concerns.

The results revealed the concern among corporate insurance buyers over worries that they were uncertain whether large claims will be paid in the current economic climate. This emerged as the biggest risk governance issue with around 40% of respondents highlighting it as a serious ‘keep awake’ risk. Lack of innovation among insurers came second, while speed of payment was number three.

Fewer than 50% of risk managers are ‘totally confident’ or ‘very confident’ that they have achieved full disclosure of material facts when purchasing their insurance policies – a finding that Airmic says “confirms its view that disclosure burdens under the present legal framework are unduly onerous”. The survey found that 28% of risk managers had a claim refused in the past two years, with 10% being challenged on grounds of non-disclosure.

The compliance of global insurance programmes with the relevant local insurance and tax rules continues to be a big issue, cited by more than a third (34%) of respondents.

Airmic chief executive John Hurrell said: “These results confirm that the issues we keep highlighting really are important to our members. The Roads to Ruin research we published last year emphasised the importance of good risk management to corporate reputation, while we have been working hard to improve the claims environment.”